I don’t know the people you are talking about, the Northern Elders that had the meeting, who did they represent? Did they represent the 19 states of the North? They did not sit down with everybody and so did not speak for the north

By Chioma Gabriel,Deputy Editor
Alhaji Mustapha Habib Ahmed was  the Deputy National Chairman, North, of the Progressive Peoples Alliance and later the national Chairman of  the party before he decamped to PDP alongside the party’s Board of Trustees Chairman, Dr. Orji Kalu.

Alhaji Ahmed in this interview opines that there is no way the North would accept Jonathan’s candidacy in the next elections as it is the turn of the North and that cannot be changed.

Mustapha Habib Ahmed

It was reported that the North has conceded to Jonathan running for Yar’Adua’s second term in office. Are you part of this agreement?

I am not aware of any such agreement. Which North conceded to President Jonathan to  run? I’m from the North, from Jigawa State and we are not aware of any such plans. Or are you saying there are no strong Northern politicians to contest for PDP? Agreement is agreement.

We cannot renege on what has been going on for a while. It was the zoning arrangement that brought in President Obasanjo and  he enjoyed it for eight years.

President Yar’Adua started but didn’t finish. Jonathan is there now on the strength of  being Vice President to Yar’Adua to conclude his tenure. After this one year, Jonathan should give room to the North to continue its remaining four years.

But during the last meeting held by the Northern Elders, they looked at what they called the other side of the coin, that is the joint ticket of Yar’Adua/Jonathan and decided that Jonathan should go on.

I don’t know the people you are talking about. The Northern Elders that had the meeting, who did they represent? Did they represent the 19 states of the North?

Did they sit down and consult with the stakeholders before holding the meeting to decide? They did not sit down with everybody and so did not speak for the north.

Are you saying the decision is not legitimate?

Of course, definitely, they did not speak with the people from my zone or my state or my local government. They did not speak on our behalf. I’m not speaking on behalf of my zone or any state but I insist that decision was not that of the entire North. I am in support of the zoning arrangement.

It is the turn of the North and that turn should be respected. Jonathan does not represent the North and should not complete the tenure of the North. He can get somebody from the North to run for four years and afterwards, he can run his turn. He can even run for eight years.

Jonathan presidency is a child of circumstance. Ordinarily, there would be no reason for this debate if Yar’Adua had not died. Based on that, a school of thought thinks Jonathan should run.

You are very correct. Jonathan is a child of circumstance but if we don’t respect zoning, we will be creating problems in this country.

This zoning issue is not just about PDP. It is about Nigeria’s unity and therefore the North should finish its eight years and then, return it to the South-East or the South-south. The North should not jettison the remaining part of its eight years to a Southerner.

If you look at the issues of the South-South and the agitations in that region, don’t you think that zone should be given a chance for now?

That is the reason I made the point I made. You see, if you want us to take it from the point of view of your argument, we have to be consulted during the course of our decision. You don’t decide and force it on us. You don’t decide for us.

You are no more in PPA?

There is no PPA. We have all gone back to PDP with the BOT chairman.

So, Akerele now owns the party?

Akerele resigned from the PPA last year. I have a copy of his resignation letter and all the media houses also have copies of  his resignation duly signed. He cannot resign and still be in the party. There is no PPA anymore. We have closed that chapter.

Your return to PDP caught many by surprise. It is almost laughable for such a thing to happen. In retrospect, how do you feel about your ‘spur of the moment’ behaviour?

It’s not laughable at all. You will find out that most of the people who belonged to the other parties were founding  members of the PDP. Dr. Orji Kalu  is a founding member of the PDP but when the issue of the third term came up, a lot of people began to protest  and the then President Obasanjo de-registered them.

He stood up against Obasanjo’s third term and because he had nowhere to go, he had to form  PPA. It was a child of circumstance. But now that Obsanjo is no more in a position to do what he was doing, it is not out of place to return to PDP, just like Atiku Abubakar and several others did.

Do you know that this zoning is not a policy of the PDP. It was just a gentleman’s agreement between a few people over tea and coffee.

Yes, it was a gentleman’s agreement. Yet, it was the same gentleman’s agreement that made Obasanjo the flag bearer of the party in 1999 and 2003. Shinkafi  had to step down for Olu Falae in APP/AD Alliance. In 1999, no Northerner contested presidential election.

We left everything to the South. Now, it is the turn of the North after eight years and people are speaking grammar.

But Abubakar Rimi contested primary…

Yes, he contested primary but the other Northerners did not support him because of the zoning arrangement. That was why even APP/AD picked Olu Falae.

But apart from IBB, no other Northerner has established  interest in 2011 presidency.

There are other people like Atiku Abubakar in the scene and at the right time more people would come out. People who are against IBB have no evidence against the allegations leveled against him. Let people come out with evidence against IBB. Wait, many people will still come out.

Atiku Abubakar you talked about has not been fully accepted in Adamawa State  where he comes from. He still has issues there to resolve.

It’s all politics. Atiku  has returned to PDP. It’s like Abia people coming to say that Orji Kalu  has not returned to PDP. He’ s back to PDP. It’s all politics.

But is it not only Jonathan who has worked with Yar’Adua that can  push his agenda?

It’s all  history. Yar’Adua is dead. May he soul rest in peace. This is a new era. And Jonathan cannot conclude the four  years of the North.

What’s your opinion  on IBB’s plot to run  the presidential race?

Everybody has the right to return to the people and discuss with them. We have passed the era of forcing anything on the people. So, let Jonathan wait. We must obey the zoning arrangement. The North should not be cheated.

The North can never be cheated because they have always been there for almost all the 50 years of our independence as Heads of state.

That was during the military regime but that era has passed. This is a new era and every agreement  must be respected. That is my stand . Let Jonathan await his turn.