My grouse with Atiku, by Obj
President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that the increasingly sour relationship between him and Vice-President Atiku Abubakar is due to fight against corruption as even he said some PDP gubernatorial candidates will be shown the way out before the election.
According to him, the fact remains that not all the successful candidates that got PDP ticket to vie for governorship position in their various states will eventually do so.
The president who said this while answering questions from a select group of 12 editors from leading American newspapers who are on a fact-finding tour of the country, also revealed that his crusade against corruption continue so as to clean the system for the future generation to come.
As a result of his administration’s crusade, he added, some governorship candidates of his party and even the former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara, had to lose his job as the nation’s number three citizen.
The president who described his administration as the best among all the previous adminstrations when it come to protection of fundamental human rights, further said it was his administration that restored hope for Nigerians.
Insisting that the ruling PDP was all out to clear its house and put it in order, no matter whose ox is gored, he had given a situation report on how far his administration has gone in the fight against corruption.
He explained that “the number three man in the hierarchy of Nigeria (Wabara) has been dealt with and he lost his job. I hope he will lose his seat. The number two man in this country (Atiku) is fighting me.
“Fighting of a lifetime because of corruption around and about. We have three or four that should have been flagbearers of the PDP at the state level and this may change to ensure that we put our house in order”.
Although he noted that “it has not been easy to fight corruption”, the president recalled that “the head of police (Tafa Balogun) has lost his job, prosecuted and jailed because of corruption. Permanent secretaries and directors-general have lost their jobs and have been prosecuted.
“Four ministers have lost their jobs and prosecuted although one died in the process,” the president explained.
He pointed out the combination of the ICPC and EFCC as well as other anti-graft agencies has taken the nation out of the bottom list of corrupt nations in the ranking of some organisations that follow the crusade.