EXCLUSIVE: ‘TINUBU CAN’T HOLD A TEACUP’ — Najaatu Muhammad Gives Reasons APC Candidate Must Not Be President In This Explosive Interview With THE WHISTLER
The Whistler, January 22, 2023 9:38 PM
The Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, does not have the presence of mind to be the president of Nigeria, a former chieftain of the party, Hajia Naja’atu Muhammad, has told THE WHISTLER during a telephone interview.
Mohammad, who is not known to pull her punches when it comes to making public comments, announced her resignation from the Tinubu campaign on Saturday and said she was quitting party politics.
In a resignation letter as the Director of Civil Society in the Presidential Campaign Council of the ruling APC addressed to the National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, she said recent developments in the political and democratic space have made it impossible for her to continue participating in party politics.
She stated that the challenges facing the country today “require me to continue championing the struggle for a better country with a clear conscience as I remain absolutely loyal to Nigeria,” adding that the problems required “the consolidated efforts of competent and patriotic leadership across every level of governance.”
But giving more details on what informed her decision to dump the Tinubu campaign, she told THE WHISTLER that the APC presidential candidate had demonstrated clear symptoms of dementia when she visited him for a private meeting in London.
She said, “Asiwaju that I sat with for two hours, he slept most of the time, it was Bisi Akande that I was really talking to. Most importantly he is not only physically unfit, he is mentally unfit, whether we want it or not, this is the truth. It’s not that I hate him, I respect him because I have heard of one or two people that he assisted which is good.
“But when you talk of leadership of over two hundred million people you know that if you remove tribal sentiments, you know that he is incapable, those that will rule are those around him. This is the reality. He is mentally deranged – I said it!
“I sat with him for two hours in London, when you talk of green, he will give you an answer of red, he can’t even decipher, he has very serious dementia, I believe he has Alzheimer’s because he cannot even hold a cup of tea.
“If you remove tribal sentiment, if you remove the Lagos/Ibadan press, if Tinubu were not a Yoruba man, he will not dare contest election because they will crucify him, but people are all there to defend him because he is Yoruba, it’s egbe omo Oduduwa over everything else.
“I was in the campaign for Yola, and we had to beg them to take the mic from him, everything about Tinubu is based on lies. Imagine he is an Hausa man, will he contest elections with all these gbese on top of him? In this campaign nobody should talk of corruption because they are corruption personified.”
Mohammad has however disclosed she would be supporting the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the presidential election because he is a lesser evil.
“What I’m saying is, if I have to choose between the devil and the deep sea, I’ll go for the deep sea, I will support Atiku, because over and above everything else, I follow my conscience. I’m not doing it for myself, I’m doing it for God and for my country,” she stated.
Mohammad, who disclosed she had not met Tinubu again since after she accepted the appointment to serve in his PCC, also claimed the former Lagos State governor had no plans for the North despite the myriads of problems confronting the region.
Recalling her London meeting with the APC candidate, Mohammad said, “I asked Tinubu, “What do you have for us in the north? He looked me in the face and said “Nothing.” I said, “Sir, you mean you have nothing for the north? The question of security, out of school children, agriculture, and many things like that, everybody in the northeast is waiting to be killed or kidnapped?”
Excerpts Of The Interview:
I Was Shocked To Read That You Had Decided To Quit Politics?
I did not say I’m quitting, people don’t read very well, I said party politics, party politics is different from quitting politics, all I’m saying is that I should not be caged to a particular party.
I have God-given ability to mobilize, I cannot cage myself to APC, that is why I left the APC, but I’m still very much in politics.
But Don’t You Think Your Pulling Out Of The APC Campaign Would Affect The Chances of the Party In The North?
I’m not in any race, I’m not contesting any election, if my pulling out of the campaign affects them, that’s their problem.
Which Candidate Are You Going To Support For President?
I’ve been talking to Kwankwaso, i know he is handicapped, I have not sat with Obi, but Obi is not accepted in the north anyway. Someone was saying between Tinubu and Atiku is like the devil and the deep sea, I said that is true but I rather jump into the deep sea.
Is There A Reason Why You Will Prefer Atiku?
Yes. I have sat with them, I wanted to leave APC long time ago but they pleaded with me not to, and made me understand that things would change. When I was first given the appointment, I was called by one Falaki.
I was actually on a flight, we were in the aircraft, and there was a delay and I opened my telephone and he called and he said this is Falaki, and I said I don’t know you and he explained who he was.
He said we want to make you a director in the civil society organization, I told him that I don’t want and he started to plead with me and I said don’t plead with me only God is alpha and omega, I’m just an instrument to be used by God anytime he wants but I have a passion for my country.
I told him Asiwaju knows me but he has never contacted me, for that reason I have not sat with him to ask him what he has for us in the north.
He pleaded with me to accept the appointment and speak with Asiwaju later. So, you know one has to be humble, I accepted but on the basis that if I’m not satisfied by the answers given to me by Asiwaju I will opt out, and he said yes, he was grateful.
That same day at night I was receiving an unknown number for about a couple of minutes, and I picked it up, then I saw a text message saying Asiwaju wants to talk to you.
He called immediately and said I’m very sorry, but I respect the fact that you refused my appointment, and I said no wahala.
He asked why I refused the appointment, and I said first, you never consulted me, I left CPC to stay with you at ACN because it was always Buhari getting out of alliance and each time he is getting out he always wanted us to follow him so this time I said I’m not going. I’m not a slave, going everywhere for no reason. I said I’m not going along with Buhari, I will stick to ACN.
So, I stuck with ACN. I supported Ribadu, ask him how much of my money I spent, millions for Nuhu Ribadu. But Nuhu left for PDP without even telling me! When I asked him, he said “Eh is it my fault?”
Then I said when I was giving you millions of naira didn’t you know that you have an obligation? Asiwaju started begging me not to disappoint them, so I said what is it you want?
He said I’m in London can you come and meet me in London? I said why not? He said, “Do you want me to buy you a ticket?” I said, “No sir, it’s not the problem.” He said, “Do you need a hotel, I said yes sir.” So, after I dropped the call, I called my traveling agent that night to get me a ticket and that is how I got to London that same day at night.
I was picked up by one Ibrahim Masari, I sat with Asiwaju and while we were sitting there came in Chief Bisi Akande. I asked Asiwaju, “Sir please tell me, if you really want me to do this job for you tell me, tell me what I did to Buhari, I always attend his campaign, the structure for the northwest is my structure, I made it and sustained it.”
I asked Tinubu, “What do you have for us in the north? He looked me in the face and said “Nothing.” I said, “Sir, you mean you have nothing for the north? The question of security, out of school children, agriculture and many things like that, everybody in the northeast is waiting to be killed or kidnapped.”
He said, “If i give you my blueprint, I will be subjecting myself to all kinds of things, sometimes they might even kill you.” I said “Who are they? Sir, you have to have a blueprint.” He said he had no intention of making a blueprint until he wins the election. I said then, there will be a lot of distraction, this is exactly what has happened to Buhari, every time we go out is about how we get power not about how to utilize it. He said if I had anything the north would need, that I should bring it to him so he can put it in his manifesto.
I said that was fair enough, but I told him that we have a network led by Sanusi Lamido. He said that was ok and asked if we should go meet him in Paris. But I told him I would do that. So, the next day, I went to Paris and I called Sanusi and I told him I’m in Paris, he said he was sorry, that he was in Monaco. So, we agreed I should go back to London and wait for him.
So, I went back to London about four or five days after he met with me. He was kind and humble when he came to my hotel, and I told him everything that transpired between myself and Asiwaju.
He encouraged me and gave me a breakdown of what we should have. The question of the Almajiri, they are the ones that are used as cannon fodder, for banditry and then the economy, agriculture, our currency. Do you know, I compiled these things till date I have not been allowed to deliver to him. So, you can see how patient I have been. I told Asiwaju I have no business being a zombie, I can’t be following you because you are Asiwaju, I don’t care who you are, I can only follow Allah. Because anyone that does not put himself on the scale of God, unto whom he will return, I think that person is a sick person.
I’m 66 years and at this age I cannot go killing, stealing and so on, to get what? At what age? He has not reached out to me up till now. I tried Sir Bisi Akande, I tried convincing Ibrahim Masari, I begged him because it was through him that I got to Asiwaju when I came to London, he was the closest person to him we know up north. I said, “Please what do I do with these things I have written?”
He said, “You know you are late now because Nasir El-rufai has already brought something that we are putting on the manifesto and the only thing that we are putting is the state police.” So, I said, so the north does not need anything except state police? State police for what? From that day I had nothing to do with them, in spite of the fact that they made me a director.
On the day we went for the inauguration, they tore my clothes because of the struggling to enter. Yes, I have never been humiliated like this! I showed them my invitation and told them who I was but they said they didn’t care, they were beating people up. When I got in there I was very angry, it took this girl, Hanatu, that was able to a mobilize seat for me. Nobody even acknowledged me.
But Do You Think Atiku Will Be Different?
What I’m saying is, if I have to choose between the devil and the deep sea, I’ll go for the deep sea, because over and above everything else, I follow my conscience. I’m not doing it for myself, I’m doing it for God and for my country.
I see Obi as somebody that has the charisma to move the youth, he can move the youths but he has not been able to move the youth in the north, and the only youths he has been able to move are those outside their stations, outside their states. He has not been able to move the youths of the southeast, I have not seen the youths of the southeast follow him, they’d rather go with Kanu, and these are youths that don’t know anything about our history, their parents probably didn’t know about the war. But for somebody like me, I still remember that my father was hiding a lot of Igbos in our house.
Why I take exception to Obi is that he has never condemned it, that is my problem with him, he has never come out to condemn IPOB. If you want to lead, how do you dialogue with them, they are even killing his own people. He said they have a right to agitate for secession. So, if you believe they can agitate, then you shouldn’t be the president of the country. He should be like Desmond Tutu and negotiate for peace as a national figure.
Asiwaju that I sat with for two hours, he slept most of the time, it was Bisi Akande that I was really talking to. Most importantly he is not only physically unfit, he is mentally unfit, whether we want it or not, this is the truth. It’s not that I hate him, I respect him because I have heard of one or two people that he assisted which is good. But when you talk of leadership of over 200 million people you know that if you remove tribal sentiments, you know that he is incapable, those that will rule are those around him. This is the reality. He is mentally deranged – I said it!
What Evidence Do You Have To Support Your Claim That Tinubu Is Not Fit?
I sat with him for two hours in London, when you talk of green, he will give you an answer of red, he can’t even decipher, he has very serious dementia, I believe he has Alzheimer’s because he cannot even hold a cup of tea, if you remove tribal sentiment, if you remove the Lagos/Ibadan press, if Tinubu were not a Yoruba man, he will not dare contest election because they will crucify him, but people are all there to defend him because he is Yoruba, it’s Egbe Omo Oduduwa over everything else.
You’re from Kano Where Kwankwaso Comes From, Why Are You Not Supporting Kwankwaso Who Is Younger?
Let’s not talk about youths, there have been some old presidents in Asia that have been very very good, and there have been very young governors here that are nothing but tyrants, thieves. So, it has nothing to do with age but mental ability and commitment. At least you can make sense of what he is saying and what he is doing.
I was in the campaign for Yola, and we had to beg them to take the mic from him (Tinubu), everything about Tinubu is based on lies. Imagine he is an Hausa man, will he contest elections with all these gbese on top of him? In this campaign nobody should talk of corruption because they are corruption personified.
Do You Think President Muhammadu Buhari Is Supporting Tinubu?
Buhari is not supporting anyone; he is too self-centred, quote me, Buhari has never supported anybody but himself. I will be shocked if he is supporting him and if Buhari is supporting anyone it is zero for that person. So, when I heard Asiwaju say he will continue from where Buhari has stopped I said, “you have killed yourself in the north” because Buhari is a taboo. Check his budget over the years, the highest is has given the northwest is 12 percent, the highest he allocated to agriculture is 2, and he is hated because of his nepotism, all the service chiefs including fire brigade, he gave to a northerner, and he picked the worst of the worse, so that we will continue to be killed and then you say your own brother is killing you. So, if your own brother is killing you what difference does it make to the victim?
As we are talking now people are being kidnapped in Katsina, there is no single day people are not kidnapped in Katsina, Zamfara and Niger states. So, when they say Fulani or not Fulani, who cares? If you dropped down from the sky and you are a good leader, what difference does it make in an enabling environment?
But when Nigeria has become the personal property of some elite. If you had given me Osinbajo, I swear I would have put my life on the line for Osinbajo, because he is a better person, he’s open, he’s proactive and he puts his eye on the ball and looks at Nigeria holistically. The few months that he was given to act he changed things, so why should I be sentimental, if the Yorubas were serious why not give it to Osinbajo, who is a pastor, you are doing Muslim-Muslim now, the holy prophet said a just atheist is better than an unjust Muslim. So, why do I care about Muslim-Muslim? But they are busy not only galvanizing the polity but deceiving people, how Islamic are they? Somebody that could not even read Fatiha is calling himself a Muslim, without Fatiha you can’t pray, which means he has never prayed, what nonsense is that?
I don’t care about a Muslim-Muslim ticket, but because Nigeria is a nation of ignorance, sheep’s been driven to the slaughterhouse, that is why our ruling class deliberately took education from the people especially in the north.
Kwankwaso would have been my best friend because I’m from kano, he was my neighbour, I know what he has done for us, he did a great job especially in terms of education, he stopped bandits, he stopped political thuggery and engaged them, put them in jobs, took them to school, the children of the poorest of the poor were given scholarships to fly outside, he did a great job. But at this point in time, he has a weak party, it’s a party that is unknown except in a few places.
In Kano, even in 2019, he won the election, but they came with police and killed hundreds, I worked in the Police Service Commission, protests were made with vivid pictures, hundreds of people were killed and that is why it was inconclusive, that is one of the reasons I had to leave the APC because I had to work for my candidate in Kano. But Kwankwaso does not stand a chance at the presidential level, this is the reality that one has to think. In my position I can’t start to be sentimental, I have to be broad minded.
I don’t wish for anything for myself, everything I’m doing is out of passion for my country, I went to a public school, Europeans were teaching me in Kano at a public school, except for my primary and junior school that I went to a catholic private school, I was the only black girl in the white school, after that Baba put me in a public school all through to the university, it was public. But Now I have to pay through my nose for my child to go to Oxford, why? Millions of our children cannot go to school, they are the bandits that are hunting us today, this is by our creation, and we still lie until we all become victims.
Will You Then Talk To Kwankwaso To Step Down For Atiku?
No, you don’t ask anybody to step down for anybody, they had a meeting the last time, and I wouldn’t want to tell you what happened because its none of my business, I shouldn’t be speaking for him.
By Tajudeen Suleiman
http://opr.news/76c89855230122en_ng?link=1&client=iosnews
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