The National Chairman of Labour Party, Chief Dan Nwanyawu speaks on the activities of the build up to 2015 elections, battle for the Presidency, LP relationship with PDP, among other issues. OLAWALE RASHEED brings some insight.
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| Chief Dan Nwanyawu |
What is the stand of the Labour Party on the recent directive by the All Progressives Congress (APC) on its members in the National Assembly to block all executive bills, including 2014 Appropriation bill?
Our position is very clear. It is a call to anarchy. It is unpatriotic and against the people of Nigeria. How would you call on your members to block the passage of the budget? That means that everything, including education, infrastructural development and salaries of workers in the public sector would be made to suffer. In addition, the security will suffer because there will be no budget for security operatives. How can you say that the screening of service chiefs should be blocked? It means that you want to cause the military to be angry. This shows how APC is. Nigerians should be wary of them. They have nothing to offer the people of this country except to continue to raise tension in the polity. The Labour Party is appalled and embarrassed by such a decision taken by APC.
How about the reasons they adduced for giving the directive to its lawmakers?
If it is based on the claim that the 2013 budget is yet to be implemented as some of the APC’s members are now saying, it is what should be sorted out in the National Assembly. They have members there, who can handle that. But, don’t forget that the issue of budget implementation has always been there. Recently, they accused the minister of finance of not implementing the budget up to 30 per cent. The finance ministry reacted and said it had done up to 60 per cent. They too only have to sit down and reconcile their differences. You don’t punish Nigerians because of your phantom reason.
Our position is very clear. It is a call to anarchy. It is unpatriotic and against the people of Nigeria. How would you call on your members to block the passage of the budget? That means that everything, including education, infrastructural development and salaries of workers in the public sector would be made to suffer. In addition, the security will suffer because there will be no budget for security operatives. How can you say that the screening of service chiefs should be blocked? It means that you want to cause the military to be angry. This shows how APC is. Nigerians should be wary of them. They have nothing to offer the people of this country except to continue to raise tension in the polity. The Labour Party is appalled and embarrassed by such a decision taken by APC.
How about the reasons they adduced for giving the directive to its lawmakers?
If it is based on the claim that the 2013 budget is yet to be implemented as some of the APC’s members are now saying, it is what should be sorted out in the National Assembly. They have members there, who can handle that. But, don’t forget that the issue of budget implementation has always been there. Recently, they accused the minister of finance of not implementing the budget up to 30 per cent. The finance ministry reacted and said it had done up to 60 per cent. They too only have to sit down and reconcile their differences. You don’t punish Nigerians because of your phantom reason.
The main issue is the 2015 election. Some people are desperate for power. They don’t want to wait for 2015; they are looking for all manner of reasons to justify their unpatriotic decision. The Labour Party cannot support such a decision. Opposition is not just for you to close your eyes when you see either negative or positive thing(s) happening. When you see something good, you applaud it; when it is bad, you criticise it and offer an alternative. That is what the Labour Party understands as opposition. We cannot be an irresponsible opposition.
How do you feel regarding claims in some quarters that your party is now an appendage of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP]; that you defend every action by President Goodluck Jonathan?
The accusation that the Labour Party is romancing with the PDP is the handiwork of Action Congress of Nigeria [ACN] now APC.
How do you feel regarding claims in some quarters that your party is now an appendage of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP]; that you defend every action by President Goodluck Jonathan?
The accusation that the Labour Party is romancing with the PDP is the handiwork of Action Congress of Nigeria [ACN] now APC.
They started the rumour when they could not convince us to merge with them. Everybody knows that the claim is not true.
Neither I nor any member of this party has ever held any meeting since 2004 with PDP officials, either privately or publicly. We have never sat together to discuss even private matters. The APC is the one doing everything to dent our image.
On the issue of defending the president, I don’t owe anybody any apology for doing that. If anybody does not like what I say about the president, such person can climb the Radio House and take a jump. We were part and parcel of the making of President Jonathan. The Labour Party endorsed him during the last election. This endorsement is still in force till 2015. We will continue to encourage him; we cannot abandon him midway. Come to think of it, have they allowed President Jonathan to perform as president? The APC has not allowed him to do his work. I want to tell you that the APC is behind the current security challenges that the country is facing. The party officials know those who are perpetrating all these killings and bombings.
Let the president say today that he will not run in 2015, you will not hear the sound of gun again in the North-East or the North-West. They are doing what they are doing to arm twist the president to stop him from running for second term. Why should that be so; why are they doing such to President Jonathan? They didn’t do that to former President Shehu Shagari.
They didn’t do that to former President Obasanjo, and they didn’t do it to late President Umaru Yar’Adua. Are they doing it to President Jonathan simply because he is from Otuoke?
Why has the president not moved against the people you claim are behind the security challenge if truly he is certain they are the forces behind it?
President Jonathan cannot behave like former President Obasanjo. Every leader has a style. My style probably would be different from that of President Jonathan if I were a president. If it were former President Obasanjo, probably, he would have mobilised soldiers to go and level the areas where the insurgents are based. He did that in Odi, Zakibiam. President Jonathan does not want to shed blood. He prefers to discuss and negotiate and resolve any problem. So nobody should see President as not acting because he has not adopted Obasanjo’s style. The main issue is that these people in the APC have not allowed President Jonathan to work. They should give him a breathing space; they should allow him to work. Nigerians are to decide who rules them in 2015.
Some claim that you are defending the President so passionately because you have been promised an appointment. There are also those who insist that you are merely carrying out the directive of the Ondo State governor, Dr Segun Mimiko, who is the only Labour Party governor and who does not hide his support for the president?
Governor Mimiko does not interfere with the running of the party. He has never suggested to us what to do in the party nor who should become anything in the party. We also do not suggest to him who to choose as commissioner or other functionaries. I tell you, this is also the handiwork of APC; it is behind all these rumours.
Why has the president not moved against the people you claim are behind the security challenge if truly he is certain they are the forces behind it?
President Jonathan cannot behave like former President Obasanjo. Every leader has a style. My style probably would be different from that of President Jonathan if I were a president. If it were former President Obasanjo, probably, he would have mobilised soldiers to go and level the areas where the insurgents are based. He did that in Odi, Zakibiam. President Jonathan does not want to shed blood. He prefers to discuss and negotiate and resolve any problem. So nobody should see President as not acting because he has not adopted Obasanjo’s style. The main issue is that these people in the APC have not allowed President Jonathan to work. They should give him a breathing space; they should allow him to work. Nigerians are to decide who rules them in 2015.
Some claim that you are defending the President so passionately because you have been promised an appointment. There are also those who insist that you are merely carrying out the directive of the Ondo State governor, Dr Segun Mimiko, who is the only Labour Party governor and who does not hide his support for the president?
Governor Mimiko does not interfere with the running of the party. He has never suggested to us what to do in the party nor who should become anything in the party. We also do not suggest to him who to choose as commissioner or other functionaries. I tell you, this is also the handiwork of APC; it is behind all these rumours.
On appointment, I am hearing that that I have been promised an appointment for the first time. However, assuming that there is such promise am I not qualified for any appointment? Are those opening their mouth loud better than me? I do not have interest in appointment from the Presidency. You read my name in the newspapers during the last ministerial nomination but I told them that I didn’t want. Some of us are not doing what we are doing for position or for money, we are doing it because of the love we have for this country. They are the ones that have put the country in the situation we are, they should be ashamed of themselves.
The same people that looted the resources of their states when they were governors; the same people that looted the country’s resources when they were holding appointments at the centre are the ones making much noise. They had fought with Mallam Ribadu because of the economic crimes they committed but today they are pretending to be lovers of this country.
They can go ahead spreading falsehood but I tell you that I am not defending Jonathan on account of promise of any appointment. I have never had a private audience with President Jonathan since 2011. I don’t think I have any reason to want to see him. Whatever I am doing is based on patriotism and nationalism.
(TRIBUNE)
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