By The New Diplomat’s Political Intelligence Desk
A global coalition made up of prominent Nigerians in North America have commended President Muhammadu Buhari for stemming the past tide of corruption including previous acts that contravened political transparency and threatened to undermine the nation’s democracy in the nomination of candidates into political offices, warning that current attempts by Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State to impose one Adekunle Akinlade, (someone with unacceptable background) on the peace-loving and intelligent people of Ogun State amounted to not only grave political corruption and acts akin to the series of corrupt practices during dark days of the then ruling Peoples Democratic party (PDP) in “Nigeria which Nigerians have joyfully thrown to the dark pages of history” but also amounts to political treachery, acts comparable to late Akintola’s misdeeds against Yoruba interest during the First Republic.
The international forum which is one of the frontline umbrella bodies of eminent Nigerians in the Professions with its office in New York known as Coalition for Democratic Governance in Nigeria (CDGN) also accused Governor Amosun of attempting to work against the political interest of President Muhammadu Buhari and national stability ”through his alleged secret, dubious and clandestine plots to tarnish the image of the All Progressives Congress(APC), the party whose platform he rode on to power.”
The CDGN warned: ”The current political misconducts and actions of Governor Amosun is totally unacceptable, reprehensible and most unbecoming of a Governor. We want to put on record that people like Amosun who never fought for this hard-earned democracy during the trying days of NADECO are daily heating up the polity because his preferred candidate for the Ogun state Governorship, one Adekunle Akinlade, whose background remains questionable (just like Kemi Adeosun, who forged NYSC certificate yet she was the one whom Amosun appointed as Finance Commissioner in Ogun state and later recommended for Ministerial position thereby, bringing disrepute to Ogun state in particular, the Yoruba nation and Nigeria in general) was roundly rejected by the intelligent people of Ogun State who saw through the Governor’s smokescreen plots to impose another person whose background remains totally unacceptable and rejectable.”
The CDGN who applauded Buhari’s vision for Nigeria, especially his anti-corruption posture urged Nigerians not to listen to the antics of the opposition PDP and frustrated politicians who are hell-bent on turning back the country’s political clock, stressing that it is better to build ”the nation now with a credible President than to listen to some frustrated politicians who want to open the tap of corruption and at the end steal the country totally dry and empty with nothing for our children and succeeding generations.” “Sadly and ironically. Amosun is threading that infamous, dangerous and most satanic path at the moment given his conduct and actions which further bring disrepute to Nigeria’s global profile.”
It would be recalled that the CDGN, an umbrella body of Nigerian Professionals in North America, Europe and Asia that is committed to democratic and transparent governance in Nigeria had similarly last month petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari and the United Nations Headquarters in New York to call Governor Amosun of Ogun State to order over alleged attempts by the later to further rubbish Nigeria’s rising global profile in the comity of nations in general and Buhari’s international image in particular.
The CDGN with its office in New York in the petition addressed to President Buhari and copies submitted to the UN Secretary General’s Office had accused Governor Amosun of plotting surreptitiously to tarnish Nigeria’s rising global image through imposition and nomination of persons with dubious and questionable credentials to the Presidency, stressing that it” was Amosun’s shameful nomination of Kemi Adeosun, a crooked lady, who criminally forged an NYSC certificate to procure appointment, first as Ogun State Commissioner for Finance under Governor Amosun’s watch and later as Federal Finance Minister…thereby bringing Nigeria’s international profile to grave disrepute and inflicting unquantifiable damage on President Buhari administration’s image…”. The Group had continued :”In all of these and while the criminal drama lasted, Amosun, the man who forwarded Adeosun’s name to Buhari kept sealed lips, uttered nothing and pretended as if he knew nothing about the sordid drama while the Presidency and Nigeria as country bore the shameful brunt of his alleged misdeeds. And rather than Governor Amosun showing grave remorse and tendering public apology to Nigerians over the irreparable damage he inflicted on Nigeria’s image by nominating someone who criminally skipped NYSC and proceeded to illegally procure a fake NYSC exemption Certificate to procure nomination for Ministerial position (Kemi Adeosun), he is currently busy trying again “to impose one Adekunle Akinlade, another person whose background remains totally unacceptable to the people of Ogun State, an act which cannot Stand and should never be tolerated at any rate because the people of Ogun State have in a transparent, democratic, fair and open process and primary, chosen Dapo Abiodun, a well known professional and a solid technocrat to take Ogun State to the next level.”
The CDGN which then asked the Presidency to call Amosun to order and ask him to desist from further clandestine moves to rubbish the country’s rising international profile had queried: ”How can somebody who nominated a crooked lady as Minister now want to dictate who would be Governor of a viable, well educated, enlightened and great State as Ogun…We cannot take further risk. Nigeria as a country is yet to recover from that Amosun’s alleged misadventure.”
