The Presidency last night said former President Olusegun Obasanjo and his anointed candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, will lose together in next year’s presidential election.
Reacting to Obasanjo’s endorsement of Atiku, the Presidency said President Muhammadu Buhari would not be distracted by the endorsement.
In a statement, Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity Garba Shehu said the Presidency was not surprised by the development.
Shehu said: “The Presidency has received the news of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s predictable U-turn and somersault on the endorsement of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, at a meeting on Thursday, and to say that we are the least surprised by the well-rehearsed theatre.
“They will lose together. Listening to the prepared statement of the former president after the meeting showed the usual ego trip and ‘I know it all’ character of Chief Obasanjo.
“In the first place, we dare to say that a pompous statement from the former president advising Nigerians on a vote against President Buhari is the best recommendation that can come at this time.
“It also betrayed a lack of understanding of today’s politics which is about good governance.
“The country voted for change in 2015 and a leader that ensures good governance which only President Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) can provide.
“Bent on these laudable goals, we will not allow ourselves to be distracted.”
The administration, Shehu said, was busy on various national issues including the restructuring and the diversification of the economy, fighting corruption, terrorism and other threats to national security; increasing the availability of electric power, improving education, health, and providing long-delayed infrastructure – roads, rail, airports and so forth.
Stressing that many governments have come and gone, he noted that they did not care about some of the projects.
He said: “We were talking about these things for 16 years under the PDP and nothing was done.
“President Buhari is proud of his record because his achievements are verifiable, while that of the PDP is manifested by the devastating social and economic impact of large scale corruption during their governance.
“The President will not relent in the war against corruption because the ordinary people are the ultimate victims if we surrender to corruption and let its perpetrators go unpunished.
“Abandoning the war against corruption is not an option. President Buhari is in this battle against graft because he cannot allow a few, rapacious, and selfish class of the elite to divert the resources meant for the well-being of the ordinary people to their private pockets.
“Nigerians trust President Buhari in this effort because they are convinced he is not in government for personal financial benefits, or for an ego trip. It is just 11 years ago that the former president and vice president in their ugly fight for power accused each other of corruption. Nigerians are yet to forget all that.”
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