Who is more intelligent? Buhari or Jonathan? Take a look at this...

APC presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd.) was on Christiane Amanpour’s CNN show about the time President Goodluck Jonathan was having a chat with journalists at a special media meeting in Abuja.

Buhari spoke about the ongoing political situation, his thoughts about Obasanjo’s endorsement and how he’ll fight corruption and Boko Haram if he becomes president.

Here’s a full transcript of the interview:

Amanpour: General, welcome to the programme.

Can I ask you first your reaction to the delay in this election by six weeks and to what you just heard President Jonathan say that they will make inroads into much more security within the next six weeks?

Buhari: Well, my reaction is that of disappointment, because the presentation made by INEC was that they were ready to conduct the election on the date they fixed a year ago, and for them to be forced virtually by the military that they cannot guarantee the safety of their workers, they have to concede to the demand of the military [for an] additional six weeks.

Now since those six weeks are within the constitutional time allowed, this was why we came and asked our supporters to remain calm and resolute and obey the laws.

Amanpour: Okay General, let me ask you because you’re a former military general: You were ruling the country briefly. Why is it that the Nigerian military today cannot take on Boko Haram and have failed to combat that terrorist organisation?

Buhari: Well this has been made much more clear when the National Assembly attempted to conduct a hearing after the soldiers were giving interviews to foreign media about being sent to the front without proper weapons. The National Assembly attempted to conduct a hearing by getting the budgets approved by the National Assembly over the last three years and inviting the service chiefs to come and tell them [why the] weapons were not procured and sent to the soldiers — and competent leadership. And that hearing was scuttled.

So in short, it’s the misapplication or misappropriation of the resources provided by the government for weapons. That’s why the Nigerian military was unable to defeat Boko Haram.

Amanpour: General, you today just got a huge endorsement from a former ally of President Jonathan. That is the former president Obasanjo. How do you react to that, I mean what would that do for your campaign?

Buhari: Well it would certainly bring more supporters to us and more confidence again to us from those who were sitting on the fence, because General Obasanjo is highly respected and as far as Nigerians [issues are] concerned, there’s no serious issue that can be discussed without people seeking for his opinion and listening to it.

Amanpour: Can I now ask you about yourself because headlines around the world are portraying this election as a choice between a failed president and a former dictator — and you’re the former dictator according to these headlines.

You know, people say — and they remember — that you expelled 700,00 migrants years ago thinking that would create jobs, that you’ve banned political meetings and free speech, that you’ve detained thousands of people, secret tribunals, executing people for crimes that were not capital offences. Have you changed or is this what the Nigerian people have to look forward to?

Buhari: Well all those things you mentioned, with a degree of accuracy of actually what happened, was then under a military administration, and when that military adminstration came under my leadership, we — the military — suspended the part of the constitution that we felt would be difficult for us to operate under those circumstances. So I think I’m being judged harshly as an individual that what happened during the military administration can be extended under a multiparty democracy system.

Amanpour: Okay so now you say you’re a democrat. What do you think you can do to combat Boko Haram and to combat the galloping corruption in your country?

Buhari: Well, Boko Haram, we know how it started. Certainly the Nigerian military that built our reputation internationally for effectiveness, it’s a great embarrassment to them and to the country that they haven’t been able to secure [Nigeria’s] territory of an area of 14 local governments out of 774 local governments.

I believed this problem will not be too difficult for [our] APC government because we know the Nigerian military is competent. It’s a question of making sure the money voted for equipment and training [is] properly utilised.

Amanpour: About corruption, there’s so many complaints from many people around your country about massive corruption they say. Can you face up against them? Are you committed to rooting out corruption?

Buhari: We have to, because there are serious citizens of this country that say unless Nigeria kills corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria. And that’s best illustrated by another hearing conducted by the National Assembly on pension fund, electricity and then the corruption in the petroleum industry from where the country derives over 90% in external revenue.

The National Assembly conducted a hearing here in Abuja and in the six geopolitical zones of the country, then they took the recommendation to the executive. And it’s been collecting dust for the past 18 months.

Election 2015: Jega appeared, educate Senate on use of card readers

The INEC chairman today stood in front of the senate to explain how the proposed card readers for the 2015 election will be use. Jega said the card readers operate with a battery,in practice during testing the battery does not run down it goes on safe mode when not in use this device also carry sim card whih help to send the details of voters into the server. which will help in getting even statistical data with respect to age, sex, e.t.c. of the electorate. He explain further that it was discovered that the accreditation figures during elections are change in order to perpetuate fraud during election. The demonstration by technical personnel of INEC thereafter took over from there. Jega however affirmed the readiness of the commission to conduct a free, fair and credible elections as schedule

Still ongoing. Further Details later.

Boko haram leader, Shekau fumes says “This election will not hold…”

Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau  has vowed to disrupt Nigeria’s general election in a new video released Tuesday.
In the ninth minute of the video which lasted for 11 minutes 57 seconds, Shekau began to talk about Nigeria’s election, stating that, it will not hold in peace.
“This election will not be held even if we are dead. Even if we are not alive Allah will never allow you to do it,” Shekau said in the Hausa language, presumably referring to the polls scheduled for March 28.
He also claimed a weekend attack in Gombe which the military says was repelled.
“And these words are our reply to the current issue that people are talking about,” Shekau said in apparent response to the accusations and counter-accusations regarding election postponement.
“Allah will not let you people hold this election because you people are saying that ‘authority’ people ruling each other,” he said.
He disputed the military’s account of the Gombe clashe claiming that his fighters overran troops and freed insurgents from prison.
Nigeria’s general election had been scheduled for February 14 but was postponed by six weeks with the security services saying they needed more time to contain the violence in the North east, Boko Haram’s stronghold.

Bayelsa women who visited Jonathan's wife, to be given mass burial

The Bayelsa women who died in a road accident on Saturday February 14 after a visit to First Lady, Patience Jonathan in Ahoada, Rivers state will be given mass burial.
According to reports by SaharaReporters, the decision to give the 11 women a mass burial was reached after pathologists told family members that standard test carried out on the charred remains of the women would take up to 6weeks to ascertain their true identities, a time the family members said was too long to wait.
Most of the victim’s families couldn’t identify their loved one.
May their souls continue to rest.

Governor Amaechi alleged, APC rally in Okrika was disrupt by Jonathan's wife

Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers state has blamed the violence that occured in Okrika, Rivers state during the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign rally yesterday on the wife of the president, Patience Jonathan.
“Clearly the wife of the president does not want APC to campaign in her home, Okrika,” Amaechi said.
Amaechi who spoke to journalists in Abuja after a meeting of APC leaders at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre condemned the act of violence and expressed disappointment over the inability of law enforcement agents’ to ensure a hitch free campaign for the APC, despite having earlier assured the party of security and gave approval for the campaign to hold.
“Again, as usual, the wife of the president won’t allow the APC hold rally in that place (Okrika). The wife of the president and the governorship candidate of Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP in Rivers again organized thugs to disrupt APC rally. As usual, the police couldn’t protect us, we are talking about over 200 policemen. I asked the commissioner of police and he said they have over 200 policemen there.
“Yet, three explosions and then they opened fire on members of APC. The ChannelsTV reporter I hear, is injured, stabbed, and members of APC injured,” he said.
“We had meetings with DSS (Directorate of State Security) and police and they confirmed we could go ahead. There were 200 policemen and there were over 20 to 30 DSS men who came there and they did nothing,” Amaechi said.
Asked if Rivers state is ready to conduct elections, he said, “you should ask the President that question. He can postpone national election”.
meanwhile the APC gubernatoria candidate have also put the blame on the president's wife and PDP for unleashing violence on innocent citizen who came out for his campaign.

APC now in majority, aftermath of yesterday defection

Six Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday have defected to other political parties. The Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, announced the defection of the members during the House’s plenary in Abuja.
The defected members are Tobias Okwuru and Peter Ali, both from Ebonyi, to Labour Party, and Chinenye Ike from Abia, to All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA). Others are Micah Umoh and Robinson Uwak, both from Akwa Ibom, who defected to Accord Party and All Progressives Alliance (APC), respectively, and Ibrahim Garba from Jigawa, who also defected to APC.
The media reports with the latest defections, APC now has 181 members, the highest number of lawmakers in the House. It is followed by PDP with 156 members and other political parties, 23 members. It would be recalled that the membership of the House released on January 14 after the defection of 10 lawmakers to various political parties showed that APC had 179 members, PDP, 162 while other parties had 19.
Based on this recent development, the Deputy Minority Leader, Abdulrahman Kawu from Kano, raised a point of order, saying that APC members should occupy the positions of House Leader and Deputy House Leader. He also said the positions of the Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip should also be occupied by the APC in accordance with the rules of the House.
However, the Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal, ruled that the matter should not be discussed as it was before the court.

Coroner’s inquest: T.B Joshua fines N25,000 by Court

Founder, Synagogue Church Of All Nations, Prophet T.B Joshua, has been slammed with a N25,000 fine by a Lagos High Court for “deliberately stalling hearing” in a suit he filed against a Lagos coroner, Magistrate O.A Komolafe.
Komolafe is the coroner probing the September 12, 2014 building collapse in the premises of SCOAN in Ikotun, Lagos which led to the death of 116 persons, mostly South Africans.
Justice Lateefa Okunnu, while awarding the cost against Joshua on Tuesday, berated the prophet for “wasting the time of the court and tax payers’ money.”
The judge expressed displeasure that the matter, which was filed in December last year, had been bogged down in several adjournments at the instance of Joshua.