Nyako’s Memo, a Leadership Disaster, says Presidency The Presidency on Saturday reacted sharply to a memo written by Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State to his colleague Northern governors, describing it as “an unmitigated leadership disaster and a sad betrayal of trust by a major beneficiary of the Nigerian nation.” Nyako had in the memo accused the Federal Government under President Goodluck Jonathan’s watch as carrying out genocide against northern states with impunity. But the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, in a statement said the content of the governor’s letter exposed him as lacking a sense of history. Okupe said the memo further portrayed the governor as incapable of rising above parochial sentiments and possessing a morbid hatred for facts and truth in public discourse. While describing the memo as extremely divisive, the presidential spokesman said it was intentionally meant to incite one section of the country against the other. The statement read, “Governor Nyako claims that President Goodluck Jonathan is from the Eastern region which according to him was responsible for the killing of Northern political elites on the 15th of January 1966! “This is a very disgraceful remark by the governor and a pathetic embarrassment to the Nigerian Military from where Nyako derives his career antecedents. It is certainly a reflection of the Governors ignorance and unpatriotic inclinations. Similarly, the Adamawa state governor referred to the Boko Haram terrorist group as a ‘phantom organization’ which he believes does not exist! How hypocritical!? “In his unwise and desperate attempt to demonise the Federal Government, Governor Nyako likened the military operations against insurgents to the activities of German dictator, Adolf Hitler! In his befuddled mind and apparent hallucination, the Federal Government should be held responsible for the activities of insurgents in the North East and the sad killings, wanton destruction, murder and kidnapping of school children as well as other horrendous activities of Boko Haram should be hung on the neck of the Federal Government! “He therefore invited his colleague northern governors to join him to sue the Federal Government. This definitely defies common sense and portrays Mr Nyako as unfit for the hallowed position of a State Governor.” Okupe requested Nyako to publish his yearly budget for the past five years and disclose how much has been voted or spent to support the war on terror or assist victims of insurgents activities in his state. He recalled that the governor was publicly attacked recently by a group of angry youths who accused him of nonchalance and failure to support victims of Boko Haram’s murderous onslaught on innocent citizens of the state. He also recalled that the same governor was recently quoted as having boasted openly that now that the Fulani herdsman can assemble the AK47 gun, the security equilibrium in the country is now balanced. He claimed that the same man was reported to have imported some Fulanis from outside the country and spent millions of naira in rehabilitating, feeding, housing and catering for their welfare. Okupe therefore urged Nigerians to ignore the letter which he described as senseless letter. He said the ignoble aim of the letter was to create disaffection among Nigerians, polarise the country along ethnic lines and unkindly disparage the present administration which continues to work hard to fully eliminate insurgency and destroy their support base. “It is obvious that Governor Nyako’s opposition to the declaration of a State of Emergency in three affected states of the North East as well as his repeated calls for the withdrawal of the Military from troubled states without any credible alternative or security road map, is an open endorsement of the activities of the insurgents which is meant to provide them unrestricted opportunity to further unleash terror on innocent citizens in order to precipitate chaos, further instability, mayhem and anarchy ; a situation which they intend to exploit to undermine the administration and truncate our growing democracy. This, Nigerians will surely not allow to happen. “The Federal Government assures Nigerians of its continuous determination to defeat terror and restore peace to every part of northern Nigeria so that every law abiding Nigerian citizen can go about with his/her socio economic pursuit without let or hindrance in all parts of the country,” the statement added. Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Ahmed Gulak, in an exclusive interview with our correspondent said it was unfortunate that a governor would be making such a statement when he knows fully well that the President has no hand in the insurgency in parts of the country. Gulak said Nyako was only telling lies with the aim of pitching the North against the President. He said the governor’s plan was to pull the house down just because he was leaving office in a few months. He said rather than castigating the President, the governor should bury his head in shame for contributing to insurgency. He said, “The President inherited all these insurgencies. You know for example that former President Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in Plateau State. The leader of Boko Haram, Muhammed Yusuf was arrested and killed during the late President Yar’Adua days. You also know the crisis that engulfed Kaduna State before President Jonathan came on board. “So Nyako knows fully well that he is telling lies. He knows that he is just pitching the North against the President, forgetting that the North today is no longer the North of his own time. “The North is populated by intelligent people, who are very patriotic and believe in the unity of this country. It is unfortunate that at his age, Nyako is behaving like a mad cow and a bull in China house. Because he is leaving government in some few months, Nyako is trying to bring down the whole house. It is unfortunate but I assure him that all Northerners know that Goodluck Jonathan is trying his best to curtail the situation.” Gulak said it was unfortunate that a so-called governor could come out and denigrate the office of a governor by making statements that are not verifiable. He said contrary to the governor’s claim, Jonathan is a peaceful man that is working round the clock to end insurgency in the North and kidnapping in the South. The presidential aide said people of the state regretted voting Nyako into office. “If people like Nyako who are supposed to be chief security officers of their states have been up and doing in their states, such insurgencies would not have escalated to this level. It is a shame that Nyako as a governor is a failed governor. Adamawa is becoming a failed states. There is no single project that touches the lives of people of the state and this is a man who is coming out to accuse the President. “Nyako should burry his head in shame. It is unfortunate that this man is coming from Adamawa State which has always been a peaceful state. “We have never had a very disappointing old man like him in that state. The state is populated by intelligent people like the likes of Prof. Jubril Aminu, former IG, Gambo Jimetta and others. Nyako is just an odd person among these intelligent elder statesmen. It is unfortunate, we regret voting this man into power,” he said.
Posted on: Sat, 19 Apr 2014 18:51:54 +0000
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