Former President Bill Clinton, second right, talks with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, center;,This Day newspaper chairman Nduka Obaigbena, left and former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, right, at an awards ceremony for Nigerian leaders in good governance and enterprise held in Abuja, Nigeria
The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL) has criticized President Goodluck Jonathan and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for hanging around questionable characters, especially those who have been fingered as far as corruption related matters are concerned.
The group was reacting to the news that a former Deputy national Chairman and ex-convict Olabode George, is among those contesting for the party’s Board of Trustee Chairman.
Chairman of CACOL, Debo Adeniran, in a statement said the ruling party was “glorifying and romancing corruption”.
“It is sickening that the President, who should show better example for the masses to follow, could glorify corruption with such impunity. Jonathan could not have been serious with his fight against corruption. He is just paying lip service to it. He is supposed to shame and despise corrupt leaders, but he is giving presidential recognition to them.
“Imagine the President appointing Chief Tony Anenih, whose only achievement as Minister of Works and Housing, was diverting billions of dollars meant for building and rehabilitating our roads into his private coffers, as the Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority, and the same Anenih is also vying for the PDP Board of Trustee Chairman. It is very shameful that our President’s list of associates is replete with criminals. This same President Jonathan was showering praises on former Governor of Bayelsa State cum ex-convict, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, as his political benefactor some time ago.
The pro-democracy group admonished the President and his political party for not caring out the expectation of the masses.
“It is so saddening that a president that claims to be fighting corruption is dining and wining with ex-convicts. The signal the President with his political party is sending to the Nigerian citizenry is that, conviction is no longer a stigma in this part of the world since they (convicts) would be celebrated and even compensated with political appointments as soon as they come out of jail.”
The PDP which is yet to hold its BoT chairmanship election despite repeated announcement has shifted the contest twice.
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