is also a Knight of the Anglican Communion. He speaks, in this interview, on some national issues. Excerpts:
How do you assess the wisdom or otherwise of the recent letter from former President Olusegun Obasanjo to President Goodluck Jonathan?
First, General Obasanjo is a person I respect so much for his courage and posture on so many national issues but this letter has torn him to shreds. Let us assume that the issues canvassed by Obasanjo are genuine, what moral platform does he want us to see him standing in making these assertions.Obasanjo as president never tolerated any dissenting view or opposition.. He was a maximum ruler with no regard for the rule of law. We thank God that he said Jonathan is raising a killer squad, which implies that the said squad is still at the formative stage, but can he explain to Nigerians what happened to Chief Bola Ige, Harry Marshall etc?
Does it mean the letter lacks wisdom?
Whatever wisdom that was supposed to be contained therein had been rubbished by Obasanjo’s very track record of brute. My take on it is that Obasanjo is serving a selfish interest. He is trying to
take Nigerians for a ride because, in his wishful thinking, he is the most intelligent person alive in Nigeria. This is absolute rubbish.
What we are seeing today is a collapsed Obasanjo political game plan of ruling Nigeria forever either directly or by proxy. He had reasoned that he will be able to control President Jonathan from his Ota farmhouse. Since this is not possible, he started grooming
Governor Sule Lamido pretending to be a friend of the North. Obasanjo and his co-travellers are the real problems of this country, they hate to learn from history.
Do you agree with those who say Jonathan is being attacked because he comes from the minority Niger Delta?
I do not quite agree with this thinking because I believe there are people from the North, the South-west and South-east who genuinely support Jonathan and the need for us to live together as one united country. It is only the cabal led by the likes of Obasanjo who cannot survive outside government that want to lead this country into chaos. Let me point out however that the Niger Delta is never afraid of any other region, what we want is mutual respect by all other regions and this should never be mistaken for weakness.
If the need arises, we shall defend our own, that is Jonathan, and our region to the very last man. We want our brothers and sisters outside our region to know that President Jonathan represents the very self- identity of the people of the Niger Delta. Forget the antics of some traitors from the Niger Delta who found their way into government under questionable circumstances. They are enemies of our region. Mark my word, in the defence of this self- identity, they will be the first casualty.
This leads us to the issue between Governor Amaechi and Jonathan and the lingering PDP crisis. What is your position?
I like Governor Amaechi, I met him once in Ghana at the Holiday Inn and he cut the picture of a young man, simple and accessible. To me, he is a man who God personally buttered his bread.
However, on the issue with the president, he goofed. He was blinded by the ambition to become the vice president, and therefore the whole of the Niger Delta can go to hell, he wants to throw away our presidency and pick up the VP slot.
I only hope he realizes early enough his folly and return home. He is one of our first eleven. On the PDP crisis, it is normal with every large party that has been in government for this long. It is a struggle for power, this struggle has always been there and I believe this will soon be over.
How do you assess the impact of the defection of those governors from the PDP to the APC?
In politics, no one is indispensable. Sometimes, we as politicians overestimate our popularity. Some of those governors who left, deep in their hearts, know that they became governors and therefore assume
popularity through the muscling of all their opponents using government security agencies. In most cases, they were never the preferred candidates of the masses but got there by government magic.
They know this, why are they playing God.
How do you see the National Dialogue?
I think there comes a time when we need to talk and agree on how we want to live together. We keep pretending that Nigeria is united, we are not. We need to work things out and the time is now.
You are from Delta State. How do you assess the performance of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan?
First, I hate to hold brief for the Executive but I think Governor Udughan is a man highly misunderstood by people. This could be due to how he emerged as governor. The problem of Nigeria is also replicated in Delta State where certain persons believe that only them can determine who governs the state. In Delta State, you will come across those who say Governor Uduaghan has done nothing.
These are persons who are enemies of progress, The same people fly through the airport built from the scratch by Uduaghan, drive on the federal and state roads reconstructed by Uduaghan, send their children to schools built by Uduaghan, visit the hospitals built by the same governor, enjoy both local and foreign scholarships awarded to their kids by Uduaghan. The list is endless. Across Delta State, there is no community that has not witnessed the presence of government in terms of development. I stand to be challenged.
Governor Uduaghan has surpassed our expectations and this is the truth. Uduaghan has done very well for Delta. Reasonable people like us give him all the support irrespective of personal relationship. As a legislator, I might not have made money from government but that does not blind me from the developments going on around me.
2015, what is your projection?
God willing, I will run for election again into the House of Assembly, support Goodluck Jonathan Election with all seriousness and work for whoever will emerge as the PDP candidate for the 2015 governorship election in Delta State.
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