Edwin Clark
Ijaw leader and former Federal Commissioner for Information, Chief Edwin Clark, has expressed fears over President Goodluck Jonathan’s safety ahead of next year’s presidential election.
According to him, opposition politicians could kill the president in order to be in power come 2015.
The elder statesman said recent statements from the party’s chieftains were worrisome, suggesting that they would stop at nothing to harm the president to get to the seat of power.
Clark said this yesterday, in Abuja, at a conference organised by a group under the aegis of Peoples Democratic Party Ward2Ward Initiative.
He alleged that the opposition politicians in the APC were celebrating the Book Haram insurgency in the North East.
The politician said those who wish for the president’s failure want the security challenge in the country to degenerate into anarchy to make the president and his Peoples Democratic Party, PDP-led administration unpopular so that their dream of winning the hearts of Nigerian electorate to get into power could be realized.
He added that such expectation by the APC politicians was an indication that they were not only unpatriotic but never believed in the Nigerian project.
He said: “I appeal to the national chairman of APC, who is my very good friend, who in those days, we regarded as super permanent secretary, not to join those who want to take office at all cost. If it is possible, they will like to kill Jonathan, they will like to poison him provided they will get into office. Is that the Nigeria that you want?
“So, Nigerians, let me say this to you, that today, I am 87 and by May next year, I will be 88; but I do believe and I have a slogan that when you are 70 and above, you are in the departure lounge waiting for your boarding pass.
“But if you are above that, it means God has something for you to do for your people. So, when I went to the airport and God refused to give me my boarding pass, then it means there is something God wants me to do in Nigeria and my coming here, I believe that is one of the assignments God wants me to do.
“You are here today doing what you are doing because you believe in Nigeria and believe strongly that Nigeria belongs all Nigerians particularly yourselves. The future is yours, I believe that most of us on the stage will give way to you when it pleases God to do so. You are no longer going to be used by others as thugs who after election dump you.
“The problem of this country, particularly in the North East is our problem. I want to say this to you that you have a future, anybody who paints the picture of Nigeria black is unpatriotic, and he is not a Nigerian.”
Clark called on the opposition to identify itself with the government in tackling the problems in the North East “which is a Nigerian problem.”
“It is not an Hausa problem, it is not a Kanuri problem, it is a problems for all of us. But where you have an opposition thinking that they can do whatever they like, all they do is to see ‘how do we come into power, let there be anarchy and we will cure it’, if there is anarchy today in Nigeria, no political party can solve it. So why not work together with the party and government in power?
“The problem of the world is not in this country alone, everywhere in this world, there are problems-economic problems, political problems, and social problems; don’t therefore deny your country. Be proud of your country.
“The mere fact that you are in opposition, and you are not in the government party, is not enough to destroy your own country, if you do that, then you are unpatriotic, then you are not a Nigerian that I said earlier on.
“We are praying by our tongue; when recently two British citizens were hijacked and killed in Irag and Somalia, what happened? The opposition—the Labour Party joined the Conservative Party to pass a resolution to allow the British Army to go into Irag and to Syria.
“The same thing happened America, they never wanted to join the war in the Middle East again but when their people were killed, they joined together, even the Republicans were more enthusiastic persuading the government but in this country, ‘it is pull the government down then we take over!’
“Who will support you? If you are not ready to support others, will anybody support you? Nobody. So my children, this country belongs to you, it’s a wealthy country, we may have challenges in economy and other areas but those challenges must be solved by all of you and all of us to have a better Nigeria.
“You are no longer going to be used as thugs by politicians and dumped after elections. That is one of the problems of this country. The problem of this country is our politicians. Anybody who paints the picture of this country bad is not patriotic.
“I wish many more Nigerian youths will join what you are doing. We want a better Nigeria where nobody is superior or inferior to the other. A Nigeria where we are all equal and a Nigeria where you can aspire to become anything.”
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