Buhari won’t ditch Tinubu —Honourable Aliyu

Hon Aliyu

•Says CPC not marginalized

Honourable Farouk Adamu Aliyu, a governorship candidate of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in Jigawa State in 2011, is equally a former Minority Leader of the House of Representatives and chieftain of the All Progressive Congress, in this exclusive interview with TAIWO AMODU justifies the poaching of governors of the People’s Democratic Party. Excerpts:

THERE appears to be a crack in the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) power bloc as we approach 2007. Some are threatening to leave APC, alleging marginalization. Buhari, that should be the rallying point in that bloc, has been reticent; we are not hearing much from him on where the CPC stands with Tinubu. What has been his role?

Buhari has no role, absolutely. What I’m saying is Buhari has never called us as members of defunct CPC to tell us that he is leaving APC or we should leave APC. And this talk of CPC, our people had better start forgetting about that because CPC is defunct. We are now APC. So anybody talking about CPC now is just wasting his time. I mean, CPC bloc leaving APC is wasting his time. Of course, there are tendencies. CPC tendencies–,- ANPP tendency, ACN tendencies, all coming to make the APC. And you can also not stop people from agitating. But some of our friends, using the name of CPC, that is what some of us don’t agree with. And some of us, prominent members amongst us, myself, Honourable Farouk, Adamu Aliyu, I was the gubernatorial candidate of CPC in Jigawa State, 2011, a founding member of Buhari movement, one of his closest associates. The two prominent persons now amongst us who reared their heads, one has already left, actually, former governor of Kaduna State, he has already left and it is within his right. But I want readers and the Nigerians, to understand that El-Rufai joined us later.

He wasn’t a founding member? Is that what you are saying?

Look, he was a member of PDP, a minister under PDP government if you remember. When we were fighting Obasanjo he was a minister, I was member House of Representatives that time. So he joined us later. Abubakar Malami who of course started his politics with us, but he started as a lawyer a counsel working with Mike Ahamba. Malami was our lawyer before becoming a member of CPC. Now Malami came out with a statement El-Rufai said he has left he has gone, that’s fine but Malami came up with a statement that Senator Al-makura who was the only governor elected under CPC, Governor Masari who was immediate past Speaker at that time, the highest ranking member in CPC at that time from politics because he was former speaker, Malam Adamu Adamu who was secretary Board of Trustees of CPC and my humble self, Malami came out with a statement that the four of us have put Buhari under the bus. So we were just surprised at him saying like that and if he also wants to leave APC he doesn’t have to mention Buhari when did he know Buhari?

But he said, you people have no right to speak for CPC.

It is subjective for him to say we have no right. And does he have the right to speak for CPC too? Does he? I mean, if the only governor elected under the party, the only former speaker who left PDP and joined us, if they can’t speak for members of CPC. Because look, they were busy calling for meetings. They called all of us. I don’t want to mention names. They call us for meetings. In fact, there was a meeting I attended.

Was it about to pull out of APC and join the coalition?

No, talking of, you know, being disgruntled with APC government that this government is not taking us along. And I remember very well, I said, “ah, how shameless of us to say that we are not being carried along. How? “ I said, you guys, some of you just are immediate past ministers. So, nobody has taken us along, did you carry us along? You know, so, and look, for me, if you are a genuine Nigerian or a nationalist, you don’t need to have an appointment before you contribute your quota. So, if he says we have no right to speak for CPC, in any case, there is no CPC. We are just speaking under the tendencies. And we are going to hold a press conference on the 7th of May where serving governors, you know, I will not mention them, but serving governors under our CPC, members of CPC, in this dispensation in attendance. The four of us, ministers in this government, and persons that have appointments in this Tinubu government will address the press. Look, Nigerians, look at us here. We are for APC and President Tinubu. And we will do everything possible legally, constitutionally, and politically to ensure that Tinubu continues in government in 2027..

Can I interject you?

Please, go ahead.

You gave me the impression that there is no CPC bloc; that what we have within the APC now are tendencies. But there are some who are of the conviction that under Buhari, the CPC bloc was fully in charge and others were marginalized. That what we have now is the defunct ACN power bloc from Lagos. How will you react to that?

It isn’t true.! Anybody who tells you is ACN is running the show, it’s not true. The same ACN rallied around our own person, President Muhammadu, then General Muhammadu Buhari, rallied around him to be a candidate. So which means in the merger of APC, ACN, ANPP and then the NPDP, the major beneficiaries are the CPC tendencies. Because they accepted our candidate, our person, our leader, leader of our defunct group, to be the president. And when he became president, let me give you a few instances, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed 10 substantive ministers from North West. And all those ministers were members of CPC bloc. Not a single minister of state from North West! Did you hear during the eight years of Buhari, any ACN tendencies, including their leader, Asiwaju, including him coming out to say, look, we are marginalised? They didn’t say so. And just two years into Tinubu’s government, some of our colleagues have the audacity to say that we are marginalized? You know, these are people, you know, the problem of the elites in this country, once an elite loses out, they will start bringing religious, sectional sentiments, which is not true. And there are some of us who believe in this country. We will not allow them to carry the day.

They are also accusing the present administration of your party of what they call, decisively, a Yorurbanization of the central government; that it’s the south west running the show. Aren’t you bothered about this labeling?

Haven’t I told you about the ministerial thing? Let me also come to the security agencies. I remember when President Buhari was in government, the Chief of Army Staff was from Northeast the Chief of Air Staff was from Northeast the National Security Adviser from Northeast in fact the Chief of Army Staff and the National Security Adviser were all from Bornu state. When Buhari was confronted, what he said was that look we have these issues of Boko Haram, I decided to put these people who knew the terrain and who know where it pinches. Now, whether that’s tenable or not it came to pass. The ACN bloc didn’t come out to say, you know Buhari was marginalizing the whole country because our forces do not belong to the north or the south they belong to Nigeria. Members of the ACN didn’t complain and come to think of it, if we are in APC and all of us believe in the party, forget about Tinubu, which means any person you know holding the positions of President, Governors, we are bound to defend them if you have issues with them we don’t come out on the pages of newspapers or on television stations, we go and confront them in-house and explain ourselves because, look why would you be undermining your party which means if you look at it it’s just simple, personal interest because if you’re doing it for the interest of the group that came together despite all odds to form the party so why are you now complaining because you’ve lost out and then my friend and brother El-Rufai who became a governor for eight years is he not satisfied? Malami who became AGF for eight years is he not satisfied? What else are they looking for? So if it is benefit personal and whatever they have so they should please allow APC to breath but as for El-Rufai, I’m happy for him, he left okay and then we’ll meet you on the field let’s meet on the field and see, let him go and sell his SDP, we will sell our APC and Tinubu, at least if nothing we in APC we have a candidate in the President so we’re not going to shop for a candidate now they are in the formation of making a party and remember and this APC, we started discussion from 2010, it didn’t materialize till 2014. Now, two years now election will come these guys have not come together we don’t know whether they are going to come as SDP or they will be PDP or there will be some new party but we don’t even know so they have a problem we don’t because as I told you, we have something in common: the president and the government

You just mentioned El-Rufai. Do you think he was fairly treated? Those who knew his role in those uncertain days of APC presidential convention that produced Tinubu are of the opinion that he was offered the short end of the stick. What’s your take on that?

In politics what is fair? What do you mean by saying fair? Have I been fairly treated? My name is Honorable Farouk Adamu Aliyu. From day one when Buhari started politics, I was with him. I went through all travails in this country because of my association with Muhammadu Buhari and I told you, I make bold to say I am the only member of National Assembly in this country that went through referendum to be recalled, my house was burnt I was denied so many things. In my state, governor Saminu Turaki was beating me up there, here in Abuja, President Obasanjo ensured I was detained in DSS several times, police headquarters several times, dragged all over the place and up till now that I am talking to you today I have never held any appointment in government and I have never complained and I have never come out to say why. Have I been fairly treated? It’s not about I’ve been. If you are doing it in the interest of your people, don’t look at governance from having an appointment. So to me, nobody should tell me that El-Rufai has not been fairly treated what do you mean? He wanted APC to win which means if in the wisdom of the National Assembly, the North cleared him. Is that been fair. I have not also been fairly treated and I have never, ever stopped defending Buhari’s government. Never! And I will never stop defending Tinubu’s government until when Tinubu leaves, another APC member whoever, wherever comes from. So I will defend my party so to me they have not treated us fairly. We came together, El-Rufai addressed press, abused all northerners all northern elders, including the chairman of Northern elders Forum, Professor Ango Abdullahi, who signed on his certificate graduating from ABU Zaria, his Vice Chancellor, insulted him all for Tinubu. That who are the northerners, who the hell are they.? He was saying he was elected twice let them come out, Tinubu must win. Now, God answered his prayers, we all went for Tinubu now just because Tinubu did not appoint him a minister, he will start calling Tinubu and look remember Tinubu is a very forgiving person.

This is the same El-Rufai who called him, before then, the most corrupt person— that he was not going to serve under a corrupt leader what name didn’t he call Tinubu still Tinubu stooped to allow a small boy to treat him that way and then somewhere along the line God answered… and as a Muslim, El-Rufai should know these things happen by design of God not Tinubu. It isn’t Tinubu that didn’t appoint him; God didn’t want him to be minister. God wanted him to be governor of Kaduna State, two terms he became governor. In fact, if you look at his antecedents, the person who brought him to public limelight was Atiku, what didn’t he say about Atiku, what didn’t he say about Obasanjo, what didn’t he say about anybody he came across what didn’t he say about this Tinubu? So probably God is paying back through Tinubu. El-Rufai, all the things he did to people but I’m telling you, you are wrong to say that he has been unfairly treated or to even anybody suggesting that he has been unfairly treated. I am a classical example of people that have served or worked but didn’t get anything but didn’t complain.

You don’t seem to be ruffled about this attempt at a coalition against the APC in 2027. Are you not bordered that some people see it as a coalition of the North against the Tinubu administration?

First of all, I’m a Northerner, a Fulani man, a herdsman. I have cows. So I’m a Northerner. I mean, true and true a Northerner, a Fulani man from Jigawa State. And when you talk of Northern elites, I’m over 60 years old. I am certainly one of the elites in the North. And we were the foot soldiers of Muhammadu Buhari. We are now the foot soldiers of the president Asiwaju Tinubu. I assure you. So you cannot stop people from talking. And then we also as APC, as leaders also, we will ensure they don’t rear their heads politically. We will. We’ll continue to put sand inside their garri. In some places, we’ll put stones inside their garri because look, if in their own putting sand inside our garri, it’s looking for people like El-Rufai to leave, or asking Hakeem Baba Ahmed to leave government, to resign that he is leaving. You know, all in trying to sabotage Tinubu. So, this is their antics in trying to get at us. Now, our reply is to get Sheriff Obovweri, governor of Delta State, to come in. Our reply is to get governor of Akwa Ibom to come in. Our reply is to get other prominent Northerners to come in. All to unify this country. This is what we don’t want calling of this North-South…

You are basking in this euphoria of poaching governors from the main opposition party. But there are some even, in your party who have expressed strong reservations about this trend; that it could lead to an implosion within your party. And secondly, you have an agenda of making the country a one-party state.

Well, about implosion, let’s get to the bridge before we cross. So I’m not going to respond. Then talking about one party, look, what is Tinubu’s fault here? If people like us go behind the scene, talk to people, trying to bring them in, why should anybody say one party? In fact, we don’t want one party in this country, but we want a strong APC. If all, and look, in the reality, is there’s a PDP now? If you honestly ask, is PDP a party? The leader of PDP is supposed to be their presidential candidate, an immediate past Vice-President Atiku, we have seen him with El-Rufai of SDP. So, I mean, is Atiku giving members of PDP a strong feeling that, look, he believes in his party? Instead of him to poach El-Rufai to join PDP. So, what is our fault here? Are we the ones saying that it should be one party? So, just because people don’t want us to talk about one party, then we will sit by and allow them to overrun us? We will not. You know, we will not for this Tinubu. I’m telling you, we will work for him. It isn’t everybody from Lagos that will work for Tinubu now, we lost the presidential election in Lagos. So, what is anybody talking about? We lost the presidential election in Delta. We lost in several states. What are they talking about? Now, these are things we’re looking at to see, okay, what do we do to remedy? What do we do to win Delta now? So, part of the thing that we have done. What do we do to win Kano? That’s what we’re working on. You know, if we are able to get everybody in Nigeria to join APC, so be it. But that does not mean, and whatever our government does, goes wrong, we do criticize ourselves, but not on the pages of newspaper. Any patriotic member of the party should not be seen to be criticizing our president, because he is the president of our country through our party. So, if you undermine him, you’re undermining your party. So, you better go, like El-Rufai left, that’s good. But you cannot, we will not accept anybody in APC insulting the president, just like we do not allow anybody in APC to insult Buhari when he was there. Because if you insult Buhari, we will attack you back in the same manner. So, anybody, whether a northerner or a Lagosian or from anywhere, if you attack Tinubu, we will attack you, politically.

I started the interview with Buhari, and I’m going to end with Buhari. You are a loyalist of Buhari?

Yes, hundred percent

What if, Buhari says to the CPC bloc: I’m going to be a rallying point, you people should go and work for a coalition? Will you defer to him or stick to Tinubu?

Buhari will never do that. Remember, when El-Rufai visited Buhari and the first time he was joining SDP and when he came out and made a statement that he has informed Buhari, he gave the impression to the world that Buhari has endorsed him leaving APC. Buhari came out with a statement saying that he’s a loyal member of APC, the party that gave him presidential ticket to run twice that you know and that he will work for Asiwaju Tinubu’s government and that he’s happy with the government. I know Buhari he’s an honourable person, he will never ever, Buhari will never ever say go and work for coalition because he’s not a traitor. Remember he was a military man.

But we are getting feelers that he’s angry , because some of the cabinet members of Tinubu are blaming his administration for mismanaging the economy and security.

No, it’s not true. Buhari does not care about those things because it’s politics now when Buhari was in government too a lot of people were saying things like this. Remember the chairman of our party Abdullahi Adamu insulted Tinubu too that time remember now so it’s in politics now you will have this kind of disagreement. Some don’t like you, you’re in the same party but they don’t like you and you don’t like them either. So, Buhari isn’t a traitor he will never, ever betray Tinubu because in his mind of minds, he knows that Tinubu has contributed in him becoming President and he has also contributed in Tinubu emerging the president and Buhari will never ever do anything to scuttle APC, that I assure you.

Taiwo Amodu