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Kalu Writes Obasanjo, Says Anenih Plots To Assassinate
Him
IN a letter which sounds rather close to retired
Colonel Abubakar Umar's open letter to President Olusegun Obasanjo, Abia State
Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, yesterday alerted the nation of plots by persons close
to the Presidency to assassinate him.
The governor urged Obasanjo to urgently address the myriad of problems
plaguing the nation, including unresolved assassination cases.
In the letter, which was copied to world such as like President George Bush
of the United States, Tony Blair of Britain, French President Jaques Chirac and
international bodies, Kalu fingered the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the
People's Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Tony Anenih as having vowed "to deal with
me the way they dealt with Bola Ige."
This, Kalu said, Anenih told his (Kalu's) deputy during a flight from Abuja
to Owerri sometime in February.. According to Kalu, several threats case have
been made to him since, adding that he was willing to submit his mobile phone
"to investigators to trace the source of the threat calls."
Calling for the urgent address of Nigerians' suffering lest there be a mass
rebellion, Kalu expressed regret that "Nigerians are suffering today more than
they had done 10 years ago. There are no functional social amenities, and hunger
is everywhere".
Text of the letter reads:
I write this letter with a heavy heart, but with strong spirit. This letter
for sure is quite different from any other letter I had written to you, even
though it bears my trademark brutal frankness and courage. The issues I have
raised in it could have overwhelming implications for our dear nation if not
handled carefully and promptly. But before I proceed with the details, I have
deemed it necessary to let Your Excellency know that I do not have any personal
grudges against you or your exalted office as President. I have always held you
in high esteem and have demonstrated in many practical ways my sincere
friendship and camaraderie.
"It is on record that I was among the early persons who worked for your
emergence as President even when some of those who cluster around you today
could not touch you with a long spoon. Whatever disagreements we might have had
in the past were purely based on principle, and an innate conviction to speak up
against anything I perceive as evil and against democratic norms and ethos.
"Intolerance is another albatross to sustainable democracy in Nigeria today.
And this has translated into the increasing cases of political brigandage and
assassinations. Intolerance among the political class has assumed a more
horrifying dimension with the recent assassination of the National Vice-Chairman
of our great party, Chief A. K. Dikibo.
"Having given Your Excellency this brief background, may I now with humility
draw your attention to a recent boastful and invidious revelation by the former
Minister of Works and Housing, Chief Tony Anenih, to my deputy, Dr. Chima
Nwafor, on a flight from Abuja to Owerri some time early February 2004. While on
that flight, Anenih had openly told my deputy that he was bitter with me, and
that plans had been concluded to deal with me the way they dealt with Bola Ige.
My deputy was taken aback by the effrontery of Anenih.
Nonetheless, I did not take Anenih's threat lightly because of its
weightiness, but my apprehension grew, particularly after receiving several
threat calls on my MTN mobile phone from February till date. Unbbelievably, each
of these anonymous callers claimed he was calling from the Presidency.
Frankly speaking, Anenih's threat to deal with me is not going to be treated
with kid gloves considering the spate of politically-induced killings since the
inception of the present civilian administration. The situation becomes more
worrisome when those who committed these heinous and dastardly killings go
scot-free.
"Anenih's reckless comment has gone further to buttress what Wole Soyinka
said many months ago that there was a nest of killers in Peoples Demoractic
Party (PDP) and that until the nest was disbanded, political killings in the
country would never stop.
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Umar launches fresh attack on
Obasanjo
By Emeka Mamah
Vanguard Friday, March 26,
2004
*Says govt is the most
corrupt
KADUNA-ONE time military governor of Kaduna State, Colonel
Abubakar Umar (rtd), launched, yesterday, a fresh attack against President
Olusegun Obasanjo, dismissing his administration as the most corrupt in
Nigeria's history. Col. Umar had in his first attack on the president a few
weeks back said there was nothing godly in the president's actions and policies
as he often claimed.
That attack drew flak from one of the president's
aides, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, who said the action of the former military governor
was motivated by the refusal of the presidency to grant him certain
favours.
But reading from a 91-page prepared text in Kaduna yesterday,
Col. Umar debunked Mr. Fani-Kayode's allegation and said: "What I have to draw
attention to is that this administration is operating one of the corrupt and
opaque systems. For example, a government that does not implement budgets which
are passed by the NationalAssembly cannot be said to be accountable and
transparent.
"The new Minister of Finance, Mrs. Okonjo Iweala, is one of
the most cerebral and upright persons and if I were the president, I would pay
such a person any salary within the confines of the law to serve. But I am
afraid that there is not much such people can achieve when the government they
serve does not even believe in budgets. Over N300 billion was spent on the
maintenance of our roads in two years and Mr. President publicly expressed his
disappointment with the results of that colossal investment. But, the minister
responsible for that failure has now been elevated to the rank of superior
member of Mr.President's ruling party and the chairman of its board of
trustees..
"Who is not aware of the massive corruption that has taken
place in the Nigerian National PetroleumCorporation (NNPC), in the first term of
this presidency? In his direct supervision of the NNPC, thepresident is yet to
account for the N300 billion shortfall in the payment for its crude allocation
fordomestic consumption. I don't know for how long this matter can be
ignored.
"Up to 1999, the crude allocation for domestic consumption was
300,000 barrels per day. But this allocation was increased to 450,000 barrels
per day at a time when the refining capacity of all ourrefineries had fallen
below 150,000 barrels per day. Now the NNPC exported the balance of up to
300,000 barrels per day and paid the Central Bank $18 per barrel as against the
prevailing international spot price of between $26 - $36 per barrel. It also
paid an exchange rate of N110 to the dollar as against the IFEM price of over
N136 to the dollar."Perhaps, the NNPC will also want to explain to the public
why some companies were allocated millions of tonnes of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO)
at a local price of N8.20 kobo to be utilised locally andsuch companies
illegally exported the product. The library of United States Congress has
records of thesetransactions but neither NNPC nor NPA has them. The profits
reaped by these companies in one month can sustain our universities for six
months. Yet, our undergraduates are being asked to pay more forregistration and
bed space at a time when their parents are being retrenched, their pensions not
paid and government corruption is taking a heavy toll on the private
sector."
Umar further accused the NNPC of allocating huge oil contracts
to some companies whose status cannot be verified by its United Kingdom
consultants, adding: "In this context, I am curious to know what qualified
Petrodale to corner a contract of 90,000 barrels per day." On the Ajaokuta Steel
Company, Col Umar alleged that a company with an annual turnover of barely $60
million was expected to source for $3.6 billion from the capital market even as
he stressed that the samecompany had no record of competence in steel production
and it was expected to lead more competent producers in a consortium."
He
also spoke on the alleged $5 million gift from General Ibrahim Babangida, his
relationship withthe former president, privatisation as well as the annulment of
the June 12, 1993 presidential election won by the late Chief M. K. O. Abiola,
pointing out that General Babangida would have de-annulled the election if
President Obasanjo had prevailed on him to do so.He claimed that President
Obasanjo was anti-June 12, 1993 struggle for the revalidation of Chief Abiola's
election. Umar also denied the $5 million gift as alleged by the presidency,
stating that he sold his orchard for N10 million to set up his ostrich farm in
Kaduna.
Speaks on June 12
On the June 12, 1993 crisis, Col Umar
said he plotted a coup against Gen. Babangida because of the annulmentin spite
of his loyalty and relationship with the former military president, pointing out
that although he supported Obasanjo after his preferred candidate, Dr. Alex
Ekwueme, failed to get the PDP nomination, he would never allow his close
relationship with anybody to becloud his vision and judgement.
"My
loyalty to Babangida which people allude to did not prevent me from vehemently
disagreeing with and opposing him when he was being misguided by sinister forces
to take decisions that were injurious to good governance and inimical to the
existence and unity of the country," he said, emphasizing that he joined the
late Head of State, Gen Sani Abacha, in a planned coup against Babangida because
of the annulment. Umar also commented on the on-going privatisation of public
companies, saying that although he believed in the exercise, due processes were
not being followed by those implementing it. "It is now fashionable and
diversionary to accuse any person who criticises this government's brand of
economic reforms of mischief, lack of patriotism and ignorance. This is an
attempt to kill the spirit of democracy whose essence is dialogue between
government and the governed.
"I am not against this government's reformed
policies in principle. In fact, I believe in the philosophy of freemarket
economy.
What I disagree with is the glaring ineptitude displayed in the
implementation of suchreforms. I also believe in deregulation monetisation and
rationalisation as means of cutting down the waste of public resources. But such
measures will amount to nothing if government simultaneously gets involved in
such wasteful expenditure as hosting COJA and CHOGM and taking part in every
peace keeping operation, indulging in rampant presidential foreign trips. I
cannot accept a situation where government over taxes the people just because it
desires to purchase presidential aircraft at an inflated rate or to contribute
to meaningless foundations. Economic reforms cannot succeed with government
profligacy and inefficiency. Government must accept that its contracts are
inflated. The Abuja stadium is an outstanding case in point," he said. Umar
further said Nigeria purchased some used Armoured Personnel Carriers (APC's)
from Poland,pointing out that due process was not followed.
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Umaru launches fresh attack on
Obasanjo
"It seems to me that
the further away you are from where the resources of this country are produced,
the better you profit from it. The people who are nearer, who are proximate to
the source of the resource are poor. During the Oputa panel sittings, I
shuddered to see the depravity of the people in the oil producing areas. I
don't think it is right for us to feel that as long as we can hoodwink, pull
the wool on the face of our unfortunate brothers, wave our authority and
powers and the amount of weapons we can use to level them, we wouldn't have a
conscience" ... Chief Benjamin Akinyede |