John Elias is a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Adamawa State. In this interview with Blessing Adimabua, he spoke on Nigerian democracy, the PDP crisis, talks about coalition of opposition parties and the effects of corruption on Nigeria’s economy. Excerpts:
You have been silent for a very long time, politically. Why?
You know in politics once you decide to keep silent there are lots of things that are happening and you don’t need to be jumping on every issue that arises. We are in politics for the sake of people and that was why I decided to be silent, but this time around, I am trying to see how we can get it right by lending my voice.
Recently, Nigeria celebrated 26 years of its democratic journey. What is your take on the nation’s democracy so far?
Well, democracy has been described by political scientists as government of the people by the people and for the people. You see, it has been going on the way it is and has been very excellent the way it started in 1999 under the former President Olusegun Obasanjo, but along the line because of selfish reasons, it has been corrupted. Corruption and nepotism are now being used to destroy the country.
Some people are just crazy about the democracy and they just want to go into government to steal money to destroy the economy so that they can be richer than every other person. The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. In fact, some of the rich people are even going down because of the action of some few people within the system; all the same, we are happy that we are practising democracy.
The only thing is that in any society certain things are happening, there are people within the system who are destroyers and who want to build only themselves and family and that is why we are where we are today; that is my assessment as far as I am concerned.
Read also: LG poll: PDP flags off campaign, George says PDP not dead in Lagos
Nigerians are hungry, angry and lamenting that things are difficult under the APC-led government in the last ten years. Can you give us a comparison of the PDP and APC administrations in the last 26 years, from your own point of view?
Well, I am very happy how the People’s Democratic Party government under former President Olusegun Obasanjo started on a very clean slate irrespective of the fact that he has a military background. He gave opportunity to all to participate in governance and during the Jonathan era too, he tried to build the economy and maintain the standard of participatory democracy and was acting on the people’s demand. But the All Progressives Congress (APC) seems to me as a platform of angry people in government because they couldn’t get what they wanted in PDP government so they decided to form a coalition of people who are angry from a fraction of the PDP, CPC, ANPP and some few from APGA to form what today is called the APC. So, they came with anger and vengeance to destroy the PDP cooperative government which of course, they did. And they are still destroying the PDP because the PDP has become a threat to them. And as far as I am concerned, PDP government in the past has maintained stability in the economy while the APC has destroyed the stability that was established by the PDP and today everybody is crying and that is why one proverb says, when two elephants are fighting, the grass will suffer and that is what is happening.
The anger favours those who formed APC and today they have more internal crisis in leadership and crisis of who should be in control and that is why today the masses are suffering while some privileged few are stealing to go and hide it somewhere. Some even steal more than they need in their life time. When Buhari took over government in 2015, people were thinking that the economy would be better, because Buhari had the interest of the people at heart. Unfortunately, he came with the mindset of revenge of what people did to him and that was why he was carefree about his actions and inactions during his tenure. His people from around the country from the Northeast and North west came and sat on the economy of the country and destroyed it. He allowed them to steal any how and whatever they wanted and go free with it. I didn’t see one day where Buhari said, this is a thief in our government but some of them became billionaires overnight and this is the problem with the APC government since 2015.
However, up till now, it is still even the same thing with the Tinubu government and he is following the same process. Though, in Tinubu’s government, there is a little change. A change in the sense that he is a bit more exposed to the economic activities of the nation, but the only thing is that what has been destroyed in the last eight years cannot be corrected within a short period of two years.
Let us see what he will do because there was no subsidy before he said he has removed the subsidy. The so-called subsidy was an avenue to steal money and that is why today people thought when he said he has removed subsidy there will be change. Initially, I thought there will be change but because it is the same Nigeria business of corruption by the majority of those in power and in fact it is even worse than before.
So, the difference is clear because the PDP-led Federal Government is far better than the APC. There is nothing to compare at all.
Recently you and some members of the PDP in Adamawa State reportedly joined the APC; how true was that?
You see, they announced my name. I was not there at all; I was outside the state. It was when I came back that people were telling me that I have decamped to the APC and decamping does not just occur like that because I started my political journey from my ward therefore, if I want to decamp, I will also start from my ward. And if I want to decamp, I am free to decamp but the process of decamping must be followed because my type of politics is grassroots politics because if my people hear that I have decamped they will think I have collected money from somebody. But for now, I have not decamped to any party.
What is your take or assessment of the government of the Governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, in the last six years?
I am very proud of Umaru Fintiri as the governor of Adamawa State because even if somebody will come tomorrow and say he has done something wrong but for me as far as I am concerned Fintiri has excellently done well in the last six years he has been in office.
In terms of infrastructure, no governor has done it like this in the last 26 years in the state. Even while I was in government in 1999, we have done our own but Fintiri is better now because he has done what we did not do then. So even if he is your enemy, you should praise somebody that performed better than you. I gave him my 100 percent support in terms of governance in the state and you know the security in the state is secured.
You know, that we are very close to Borno Sate that is why you see small signs of insecurity in those local governments close to Borno State besides that, Adamawa State is very peaceful.
Some political stakeholders are gathering to form coalition towards 2027 general election. What is your reaction?
Well, which coalition? This is because I am scared about this coalition. Which party and which party are forming the coalition because one day, they will collide and fall. But the coalition is that if they come to power, they will always do the same thing because they are coming with anger because they are coming for vengeance and the attention for the people will not be there because the poor will be poorer and the rich will be richer. So, I am looking at it from the position of fighting the APC and what have you. I don’t think they will succeed.
As a member of the PDP are you happy with what is happening in the party?
I am not happy at all, but you see, the party is fighting itself and it is dangerous to fight yourself. And once there is fight within there will be no leadership because even the leader will be seen as an enemy. So now, the party is at the root of destruction and collapse because one there is no substantiative chairman and even the secretaryship is in crisis because of the two people claiming the seat.
Only recently, the board of trustees said, this is the secretary, but still no head way.
And I think if nothing is done to salvage the situation, the party is at the verge of destruction.
As 2027 is fast approaching will you running for any office?
Everything is the hands of God, because I have not decided to contest for anything yet but what will happen in the future I don’t know. So, everything is the hands of God. When you say you want to contest for any office you are not a representative of your people but when your people say come and contest, it means they want you and that you are a good person and you are going to work for them. But for now, nobody has told me to come and do anything for us and I have not put it at the back of my mind to run for anything. But if they say contest, I will do that but for now, I have not thought about it.
Finally, what is your message to Nigerians as 2027 is fast approaching?
Well, I want to call on Nigerians to be more proactive about proper democracy on who is going to correct the economy that is falling. Someone, who will do what the masses want and empower the youths and women because presently people are suffering too much. We need somebody who will put the economy in the right direction in accordance with what the people need. So, I call on every Nigerian to be more proactive on good governance and also pray that we get somebody who will put our economy right.
businessday.ng (Article Sourced Website)
#talks #coalition #Elias #Businessday