The letter read thus:
December 20th 2013
His Excellency,
Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, GCFR
Agbe L’Oba House, Quarry Road,
Ibara, Abeokuta.
RE: BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE
I wish to formally acknowledge your letter dated December 2, 2013 and other previous correspondence similar to it.
You will recall that all the letters
were brought to me by hand. Although both of us discussed some of the
issues in those letters, I had not, before now, seen the need for any
formal reply since, to me, they contained advice from a former President
to a serving President. Obviously, you felt differently because in your
last letter, you complained about my not acknowledging or replying your
previous letters.
It is with the greatest possible
reluctance that I now write this reply. I am most uneasy about embarking
on this unprecedented and unconventional form of open communication
between me and a former leader of our country because I know that there
are more acceptable and dignified means of doing so.
But I feel obliged to reply your
letter for a number of reasons: one, you formally requested for a reply
and not sending you one will be interpreted as ignoring a former
President.
Secondly, Nigerians know the role you
have played in my political life and given the unfortunate tone of your
letter, clearly, the grapes have gone sour. Therefore, my side of the
story also needs to be told.
The third reason why I must reply you
in writing is that your letter is clearly a threat to national security
as it may deliberately or inadvertently set the stage for subversion.
The fourth reason for this reply is
that you raised very weighty issues, and since the letter has been made
public, Nigerians are expressing legitimate concerns. A response from me
therefore, becomes very necessary.
The fifth reason is that this letter
may appear in biographies and other books which political commentators
on Nigeria’s contemporary politics may write. It is only proper for such
publications to include my comments on the issues raised in your
letter.
Sixthly, you are very unique in terms
of the governance of this country. You were a military Head of State for
three years and eight months, and an elected President for eight years.
That means you have been the Head of Government of Nigeria for about
twelve years. This must have, presumably, exposed you to a lot of
information. Thus when you make a statement, there is the tendency for
people to take it seriously.
The seventh reason is that the timing
of your letter coincided with other vicious releases. The Speaker of the
House of Representatives spoke of my “body language”
encouraging corruption. A letter written to me by the CBN Governor
alleging that NNPC, within a period of 19 months did not remit the sum
of USD49.8 billion to the federation account, was also deliberately
leaked to the public.
The eighth reason is that it appears
that your letter was designed to incite Nigerians from other
geopolitical zones against me and also calculated to promote ethnic
disharmony. Worse still, your letter was designed to instigate members
of our Party, the PDP, against me.
The ninth reason is that your letter
conveys to me the feeling that landmines have been laid for me.
Therefore, Nigerians need to have my response to the issues raised
before the mines explode.
The tenth and final reason why my
reply is inevitable is that you have written similar letters and made
public comments in reference to all former Presidents and Heads of
Government starting from Alhaji Shehu Shagari and these have instigated
different actions and reactions. The purpose and direction of your
letter is distinctly ominous, and before it is too late, my
clarifications on the issues need to be placed on record.
Let me now comment on the issues you
raised. In commenting I wish to crave your indulgence to compare what is
happening now to what took place before. This, I believe, will enable
Nigerians see things in better perspective because we must know where we
are coming from so as to appreciate where we now are, and to allow us
clearly map out where we are going.
You raised concerns about the security
situation in the country. I assure you that I am fully aware of the
responsibility of government for ensuring the security of the lives and
property of citizens. My Administration is working assiduously to
overcome current national security challenges, the seeds of which were
sown under previous administrations. There have been some setbacks; but
certainly there have also been great successes in our efforts to
overcome terrorism and insurgency.
Those who continue to down-play our
successes in this regard, amongst whom you must now be numbered, appear
to have conveniently forgotten the depths to which security in our
country had plunged before now.
At a stage, almost the entire
North-East of Nigeria was under siege by insurgents. Bombings of
churches and public buildings in the North and the federal capital
became an almost weekly occurrence. Our entire national security
apparatus seemed nonplussed and unable to come to grips with the new
threat posed by the berthing of terrorism on our shores.
But my administration has since
brought that very unacceptable situation under significant control. We
have overhauled our entire national security architecture, improved
intelligence gathering, training, funding, logistical support to our
armed forces and security agencies, and security collaboration with
friendly countries with very visible and positive results.
The scope and impact of terrorist
operations have been significantly reduced and efforts are underway to
restore full normalcy to the most affected North Eastern region and
initiate a post-crisis development agenda, including a special
intervention programme to boost the region’s socio-economic progress.
In doing all this, we have kept our
doors open for dialogue with the insurgents and their supporters through
efforts such as the work of the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and
the Peaceful Resolution of the Security Challenges in the North-East.
You also know that the Governor of Borno State provided the items you
mentioned to me as carrots. Having done all this and more, it is
interesting that you still accuse me of not acting on your hardly
original recommendation that the carrot and stick option be deployed to
solve the Boko Haram problem.
Your suggestion that we are pursuing a
“war against violence without understanding the root causes of the
violence and applying solutions to deal with all the underlying factors”
is definitely misplaced because from the onset of this administration,
we have been implementing a multifaceted strategy against militancy,
insurgency and terrorism that includes poverty alleviation, economic
development, education and social reforms.
Even though basic education is the
constitutional responsibility of States, my administration has, as part
of its efforts to address ignorance and poor education which have been
identified as two of the factors responsible for making some of our
youth easily available for use as cannon fodder by insurgents and
terrorists, committed huge funds to the provision of modern basic
education schools for the Almajiri in several Northern States. The
Federal Government under my leadership has also set up nine additional
universities in the Northern States and three in the Southern States in
keeping with my belief that proper education is the surest way of
emancipating and empowering our people.
More uncharitable persons may even see
a touch of sanctimoniousness in your new belief in the carrot and stick
approach to overcoming militancy and insurgency. You have always
referred to how you hit Odi in Bayelsa State to curb militancy in the
Niger Delta. If the invasion of Odi by the Army was the stick, I did
not see the corresponding carrot. I was the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa
State then, and as I have always told you, the invasion of Odi did not
solve any militancy problem but, to some extent, escalated it. If it had
solved it, late President Yar’Adua would not have had to come up with
the amnesty program. And while some elements of the problem may still be
there, in general, the situation is reasonably better.
In terms of general insecurity in the
country and particularly the crisis in the Niger Delta, 2007 was one of
the worst periods in our history. You will recall three incidents that
happened in 2007 which seemed to have been orchestrated to achieve
sinister objectives. Here in Abuja, a petrol tanker loaded with
explosives was to be rammed into the INEC building. But luckily for the
country, an electric pole stopped the tanker from hitting the INEC
building. It is clear that this incident was meant to exploit the
general sense of insecurity in the nation at the time to achieve the aim
of stopping the 2007 elections. It is instructive that you, on a
number of occasions, alluded to this fact.
When that incident failed, an armed
group invaded Yenagoa one evening with the intent to assassinate me.
Luckily for me, they could not. They again attacked and bombed my
country home on a night when I was expected in the village. Fortunately,
as God would have it, I did not make the trip.
I recall that immediately after both
incidents, I got calls expressing the concern of Abuja. But Baba, you
know that despite the apparent concern of Abuja, no single arrest was
ever made. I was then the Governor of Bayelsa State and the PDP
Vice-Presidential candidate. The security people ordinarily should have
unraveled the assassination attempt on me.
You also raised the issues of
kidnapping, piracy and armed robbery. These are issues all Nigerians,
including me are very concerned about. While we will continue to do our
utmost best to reduce all forms of criminality to the barest minimum in
our country, it is just as well to remind you that the first major case
of kidnapping for ransom took place around 2006. And the Boko Haram
crisis dates back to 2002. Goodluck Jonathan was not the President of
the country then. Also, armed robbery started in this country
immediately after the civil war and since then, it has been a problem to
all succeeding governments. For a former Head of Government, who
should know better, to present these problems as if they were creations
of the Jonathan Administration is most uncharitable.
Having said that, let me remind you of
some of the things we have done to curb violent crime in the country.
We have reorganized the Nigerian Police Force and appointed a more
dynamic leadership to oversee its affairs. We have also improved its
manpower levels as well as funding, training and logistical support.
We have also increased the
surveillance capabilities of the Police and provided its air-wing with
thrice the number of helicopters it had before the inception of the
present administration. The National Civil Defence and Security Corps
has been armed to make it a much more effective ally of the police and
other security agencies in the war against violent crime. At both
domestic and international levels, we are doing everything possible to
curb the proliferation of the small arms and light weapons with which
armed robberies, kidnappings and piracy are perpetrated. We have also
enhanced security at our borders to curb cross-border crimes.
We are aggressively addressing the
challenge of crude oil theft in collaboration with the state Governors.
In addition, the Federal Government has engaged the British and US
governments for their support in the tracking of the proceeds from the
purchase of stolen crude. Similarly, a regional Gulf of Guinea security
strategy has been initiated to curb crude oil theft and piracy.
Perhaps the most invidious accusation
in your letter is the allegation that I have placed over one thousand
Nigerians on a political watch list, and that I am training snipers and
other militia to assassinate people. Baba, I don’t know where you got
that from but you do me grave injustice in not only lending credence to
such baseless rumours, but also publicizing it. You mentioned God
seventeen times in your letter. Can you as a Christian hold the Bible
and say that you truly believe this allegation?
The allegation of training snipers to
assassinate political opponents is particularly incomprehensible to me.
Since I started my political career as a Deputy Governor, I have never
been associated with any form of political violence. I have been a
President for over three years now, with a lot of challenges and
opposition mainly from the high and mighty. There have certainly been
cases of political assassination since the advent of our Fourth
Republic, but as you well know, none of them occurred under my
leadership.
Regarding the over one thousand people
you say are on a political watch list, I urge you to kindly tell
Nigerians who they are and what agencies of government are “watching”
them. Your allegation that I am using security operatives to harass
people is also baseless. Nigerians are waiting for your evidence of
proof. That was an accusation made against previous administrations,
including yours, but it is certainly not my style and will never be.
Again, if you insist on the spurious claim that some of your relatives
and friends are being harassed, I urge you to name them and tell
Nigerians what agencies of my administration are harassing them.
I also find it difficult to believe
that you will accuse me of assisting murderers, or assigning a
presidential delegation to welcome a murderer. This is a most
unconscionable and untrue allegation. It is incumbent on me to remind
you that I am fully conscious of the dictates of my responsibilities to
God and our dear nation. It is my hope that devious elements will not
take advantage of your baseless allegation to engage in brazen and
wanton assassination of high profile politicians as before, hiding under
the alibi your “open letter” has provided for them.
Nevertheless, I have directed the
security agencies and requested the National Human Rights Commission to
carry out a thorough investigation of these criminal allegations and
make their findings public.
That corruption is an issue in Nigeria
is indisputable. It has been with us for many years. You will recall
that your kinsman, the renowned afro-beat maestro, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti
famously sang about it during your first stint as Head of State. Sonny
Okosun also sang about corruption. And as you may recall, a number of
Army Generals were to be retired because of corruption before the Dimka
coup. Also, the late General Murtala Mohammed himself wanted to retire
some top people in his cabinet on corruption-related issues before he
was assassinated. Even in this Fourth Republic, the Siemens and
Halliburton scandals are well known.
The seed of corruption in this country
was planted a long time ago, but we are doing all that we can to
drastically reduce its debilitating effects on national development and
progress. I have been strengthening the institutions established to
fight corruption. I will not shield any government official or private
individual involved in corruption, but I must follow due process in all
that I do. And whenever clear cases of corruption or fraud have been
established, my administration has always taken prompt action in keeping
with the dictates of extant laws and procedures. You cannot claim to be
unaware of the fact that several highly placed persons in our country,
including sons of some of our party leaders are currently facing trial
for their involvement in the celebrated subsidy scam affair. I can
hardly be blamed if the wheels of justice still grind very slowly in our
country, but we are doing our best to support and encourage the
judiciary to quicken the pace of adjudication in cases of corruption.
Baba, I am amazed that with all the
knowledge garnered from your many years at the highest level of
governance in our country, you could still believe the spurious
allegation contained in a letter written to me by the Governor of the
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and surreptitiously obtained by you,
alleging that USD49.8 billion, a sum equal to our entire national budget
for two years, is “unaccounted for” by the NNPC. Since, as
President, you also served for many years as Minister of Petroleum
Resources, you very well know the workings of the corporation. It is
therefore intriguing that you have made such an assertion. You made a
lot of insinuations about oil theft, shady dealings at the NNPC and the
NNPC not remitting the full proceeds of oil sales to the of CBN. Now
that the main source of the allegations which you rehashed has publicly
stated that he was “misconstrued”, perhaps you will find it in
your heart to apologize for misleading unwary Nigerians and impugning
the integrity of my administration on that score.
Your claim of “Atlantic Oil
loading about 130, 000 barrels sold by Shell and managed on behalf of
NPDC with no sale proceeds paid into the NPDC account” is also
disjointed and baseless because no such arrangement as you described
exists between Atlantic Oil and the Nigeria Petroleum Development
Company. NPDC currently produces about 138, 000 barrels of oil per day
from over 7 producing assets. The Crude Oil Marketing Division (COMD) of
the NNPC markets all of this production on behalf of NPDC with proceeds
paid into NPDC account.
I am really shocked that with all
avenues open to you as a former Head of State for the verification of
any information you have received about state affairs, you chose to go
public with allegations of “high corruption” without offering a shred of supporting evidence. One of your political “sons”
similarly alleged recently that he told me of a minister who received a
bribe of $250 Million from an oil company and I did nothing about it.
He may have been playing from a shared script, but we have not heard
from him again since he was challenged to name the minister involved and
provide the evidence to back his claim. I urge you, in the same
vein, to furnish me with the names, facts and figures of a single
verifiable case of the “high corruption” which you say stinks
all around my administration and see whether the corrective action you
advocate does not follow promptly. And while you are at it, you may also
wish to tell Nigerians the true story of questionable waivers of
signature bonuses between 2000 and 2007.
While, by the Grace of God Almighty, I
am the first President from a minority group, I am never unmindful of
the fact that I was elected leader of the whole of Nigeria and I have
always acted in the best interest of all Nigerians. You referred to the
divisive actions and inflammatory utterances of some individuals from
the South-South and asserted that I have done nothing to call them to
order or distance myself from their ethnic chauvinism. Again that is
very untrue. I am as committed to the unity of this country as any
patriot can be and I have publicly declared on many occasions that no
person who threatens other Nigerians or parts of the country is acting
on my behalf.
It is very regrettable that in your
letter, you seem to place sole responsibility for the ongoing intrigues
and tensions in the PDP at my doorstep, and going on from that position,
you direct all your appeals for a resolution at me. Baba, let us all be
truthful to ourselves, God and posterity. At the heart of all the
current troubles in our party and the larger polity is the unbridled
jostling and positioning for personal or group advantage ahead of the
2015 general elections. The “bitterness, anger, mistrust, fear and deep suspicion” you wrote about all flow from this singular factor.
It is indeed very unfortunate that the
seeming crisis in the party was instigated by a few senior members of
the party, including you. But, as leader of the party, I will continue
to do my best to unite it so that we can move forward with strength and
unity of purpose. The PDP has always recovered from previous crises with
renewed vigour and vitality. I am very optimistic that that will be the
case again this time. The PDP will overcome any temporary setback,
remain a strong party and even grow stronger.
Instigating people to cause problems
and disaffection within the party is something that you are certainly
familiar with. You will recall that founding fathers of the Party were
frustrated out of the Party at a time. Late Chief Sunday Awoniyi was
pushed out, Late Chief Solomon Lar left and later came back, Chief Audu
Ogbeh and Chief Tom Ikimi also left. Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo left and
later came back. In 2005/2006, link-men were sent to take over party
structures from PDP Governors in an unveiled attempt to undermine the
state governors. In spite of that, the Governors did not leave the Party
because nobody instigated and encouraged them to do so.
The charge that I was involved in
anti-party activities in governorship elections in Edo, Ondo, Lagos, and
Anambra States is also very unfortunate. I relate with all Governors
irrespective of political party affiliation but I have not worked
against the interest of the PDP. What I have not done is to influence
the electoral process to favour our Party. You were definitely never so
inclined, since you openly boasted in your letter of how you supported
Alhaji Shehu Shagari against Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Chief Nnamdi Azikiwe
and others in the 1979 presidential elections while serving as a
military Head of State. You and I clearly differ in this regard, because
as the President of Nigeria, I believe it is my duty and responsibility
to create a level playing field for all parties and all candidates.
Recalling how the PDP lost in states
where we were very strong in 2003 and 2007 such as Edo, Ondo, Imo,
Bauchi, Anambra, and Borno, longstanding members of our great party with
good memory will also consider the charge of anti-party activities you
made against me as misdirected and hugely hypocritical. It certainly was
not Goodluck Jonathan’s “personal ambition or selfish interest” that caused the PDP to lose the governorship of Ogun State and all its senatorial seats in the last general elections.
You quoted me as saying that I have
not told anybody that I will seek another term in office in 2015. You
and your ambitious acolytes within the party have clearly decided to act
on your conclusion that “only a fool will believe that statement”
and embark on a virulent campaign to harass me out of an undeclared
candidature for the 2015 presidential elections so as to pave the way
for a successor anointed by you.
You will recall that you serially
advised me that we should refrain from discussing the 2015 general
elections for now so as not to distract elected public officials from
urgent task of governance. While you have apparently moved away from
that position, I am still of the considered opinion that it would have
been best for us to do all that is necessary to refrain from heating up
the polity at this time. Accordingly, I have already informed Nigerians
that I will only speak on whether or not I will seek a second term when
it is time for such declarations. Your claims about discussions I had
with you, Governor Gabriel Suswam and others are wrong, but in keeping
with my declared stance, I will reserve further comments until the
appropriate time.
Your allegation that I asked half a
dozen African Presidents to speak to you about my alleged ambition for
2015, is also untrue. I have never requested any African President to
discuss with you on my behalf. In our discussion, I mentioned to you
that four Presidents told me that they were concerned about the
political situation in Nigeria and intended to talk to you about it. So
far, only three of them have confirmed to me that they have had any
discussion with you. If I made such a request, why would I deny it?
The issue of Buruji Kashamu is one of
those lies that should not be associated with a former President. The
allegation that I am imposing Kashamu on the South-West is most
unfortunate and regrettable. I do not even impose Party officials in my
home state of Bayelsa and there is no zone in this country where I have
imposed officials. So why would I do so in the South West? Baba, in
the light of Buruji’s detailed public response to your “open letter”, it
will be charitable for you to render an apology to Nigerians and I.
On the issue of investors being scared
to come to Nigeria, economic dormancy, and stagnation, I will just
refer you to FDI statistics from 2000 to 2013. Within the last three
years, Nigeria has emerged as the preferred destination for investments
in Africa, driven by successful government policies to attract foreign
investors. For the second year running, the United Nations Conference on
Trade and Investments (UNCTAD) has ranked Nigeria as the number one
destination for investments in Africa, and as having the fourth highest
returns in the world.
Today, Nigeria is holding 18 percent
of all foreign investments in Africa and 60 percent of all foreign
investments in the ECOWAS Sub-Region. Kindly note also that in the seven
years between 2000 and 2007 when you were President, Nigeria attracted a
total of $24.9 Billion in FDI. As a result of our efforts which you
disparage, the country has seen an FDI inflow of $25.7 Billion in just
three years which is more than double the FDI that has gone to the
second highest African destination. We have also maintained an annual
national economic growth rate of close to seven per cent since the
inception of this administration. What then, is the justification for
your allegation of scared investors and economic dormancy?
Although it was not emphasized in your
letter of December 2, 2013, you also conveyed, in previous
correspondence, the impression that you were ignorant of the very
notable achievements of my administration in the area of foreign
relations. It is on record that under my leadership, Nigeria has played a
key role in resolving the conflicts in Niger, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali,
Guinea Bissau and others.
The unproductive rivalry that existed
between Nigeria and some ECOWAS countries has also been ended under my
watch and Nigeria now has better relations with all the ECOWAS
countries. At the African Union, we now have a Commissioner at the AU
Commission after being without one for so long. We were in the United
Nations Security Council for the 2010/2011 Session and we have been
voted in again for the 2014/2015 Session. From independence to 2010, we
were in the U.N. Security Council only three times but from 2010 to
2015, we will be there two times.
This did not happen by chance. My
Administration worked hard for it and we continue to maintain the best
possible relations with all centres of global political and economic
power. I find it hard therefore, to believe your assertions of untoward
concern in the international community over the state of governance in
Nigeria
With respect to the Brass and Olokola
LNG projects, you may have forgotten that though you started these
projects, Final Investment Decisions were never reached. For your
information, NNPC has not withdrawn from either the Olokola or the Brass
LNG projects.
On the Rivers State Water Project, you
were misled by your informant. The Federal Government under my watch
has never directed or instructed the Africa Development Bank to put on
hold any project to be executed in Rivers state or any other State
within the Federation. The Rivers Water Project was not originally in
the borrowing plan but it was included in April 2013 and appraised in
May. Negotiations are ongoing with the AfDB. I have no doubt that you
are familiar with the entire process that prefaces the signing of a
Subsidiary Loan Agreement as in this instance.
Let me assure you and all Nigerians
that I do not engage in negative political actions and will never, as
President, oppress the people of a State or deprive them of much needed
public services as a result of political disagreement
I have noted your comments on the
proposed National Conference. Contrary to the insinuation in your
letter, the proposed conference is aimed at bringing Nigerians together
to resolve contentious national issues in a formal setting. This is a
sure way of promoting greater national consensus and unity, and not a
recipe for “disunity, confusion and chaos” as you alleged in your letter.
Having twice held the high office of
President, Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, I trust that you will understand that I cannot
possibly find the time to offer a line-by-line response to all the
accusations and allegations made in your letter while dealing with other
pressing demands of office and more urgent affairs of state.
I have tried, however, to respond to
only the most serious of the charges which question my sincerity,
personal honour, and commitment to the oath which I have sworn, to
always uphold and protect the interests of all Nigerians, and promote
their well-being.
In closing, let me state that you have
done me grave injustice with your public letter in which you wrongfully
accused me of deceit, deception, dishonesty, incompetence,
clannishness, divisiveness and insincerity, amongst other ills.
I have not, myself, ever claimed to be
all-knowing or infallible, but I have never taken Nigeria or Nigerians
for granted as you implied, and I will continue to do my utmost to steer
our ship of state towards the brighter future to which we all aspire.
Please accept the assurances of my highest consideration and warm regards.
GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN
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