Presidency has told former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, that President Muhammadu Buhari is like a soldier in war front and does not have the “fleeting moment to bother about mosquito bites and political innuendos.”
A Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said this in an interview with Punch.
He spoke about Obasanjo’s claim on the $16 billion power projects where the ex-President was quoted to have said presidential aides should read his earlier response to the case and educate Buhari in the language he would understand.
He also spoke about President Buhari’s open support for Comrade Adams Oshiomhole as the All Progressives Congress, APC, national convention draws nearer.
Responding to Obasanjo’s statement, Shehu said, “With due respect to the former President, no story I’d complete without a chance of hearing from the other side. The wisdom of the late prominent playwright and essayist, Chinua Achebe, comes handy here . He once wrote that ‘until lionesses become historians, the story of hunting will always make heroes of hunters.’ Mr. President is not given to much talking.
“He asked, ‘Where is the power?’ Truly, if $16 bn was drawn from the national treasury towards power supply , how many Nigerians would accept it as money well spent? More so, as uninterrupted power supply is still an El Dorado best imagined.
“By the way , a retiree does have a lot of time at his disposal to dramatise his feelings and should be allowed to enjoy just that. It is not in the character of President Buhari to insult or denigrate others.
“Like a soldier in the war front, President Buhari really does not have the fleeting moment to bother about mosquito bites and political innuendos. He isfocused on fixing the wrongs of the past and placing Nigeria on a new pedestal of equitable growth and development .
“Buhari’s open support for Adams Oshiomhole’s aspiration to become APC chairman is believed to have contributed to the crisis in the party . As the party’s leader is he supposed to be partisan in such an open manner?
“Politics is a dynamic discipline and very interesting too. Not too long ago , many people frowned on the President, a converted democrat , staying away from the leadership tussle in the National Assembly.
“Some even said Mr . President was not a proper politician. This time round, President Buhari should be permitted to exercise his political right to association and freedom of choice . This does not, in any way, take anything away from the rights of others to lobby members or contest positions.
”The President is just one person. The beauty of democracy is in citizens ’ participation and it is ingrained in the constitution of our country.”
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