It has emerged that some of the
hardcore supporters of former President Goodluck wanted a military coup to prevent
Muhammadu Buhari from assuming power.
After Jonathan had conceded the
election to Buhari, it was suggested at one of the crisis meetings that the
military should stage a coup — in which case neither Jonathan nor Buhari would
be in power.
There were fears then that Buhari
would launch a vendetta campaign against those who offended him during
electioneering.
But the suggestion was shot down
by an unnamed person who said it was too late in the day, pointing out that it
would have been more plausible before the election was held at all.
These are some of the revelations
in a new book, ‘On a Platter of Gold:
How Jonathan Won and Lost Nigeria’, written by Bolaji Abdullahi.
The book will go on sale
nationwide from November 30, 2017 after the launch.
In the advance copy made
available, the author said everyone who heard the audio of Jonathan’s telephone
conversation with Buhari breathed a sigh of relief that the president found it
in himself to take the road that had been so less travelled on the continent of
Africa.
However, he wrote, “many in
President Jonathan’s circles were still convinced that he had moved too quickly
to congratulate Buhari. As they saw it, he should have tarried a while and
possibly consulted more. In spite of what had happened however, it was still
possible to salvage something. Jonathan’s call had more or less shut the door
on everything. However, so long as Buhari had not been sworn in, there would
still be cracks that sheer grit and guile could blow wide open.
“Another meeting was quickly summoned.
Again, the idea of military takeover was mooted. The two most senior military
officers at the meeting held to deliberate on this however advised that it was
too late in the day. The ideal moment would have been before the six weeks
postponement. If they had taken over at the time, they would have sacked (INEC
chairman Attahiru) Jega as part of the military intervention and announced a
new date for the election.
“While they might not be able to
keep Jonathan in power, they would have been able to guarantee that Buhari
would not be president. As things stood, no one would be able to withstand the
bloodletting that could follow a military takeover after a clear winner had
emerged.”
PDP chiefs later held a meeting
where it was decided that Ahmed Adamu Mu’azu, who was then the national
chairman, should issue a statement rejecting the outcome of the election and
that the party would head for the tribunal.
But Mu’azu declined after the
statement was drafted, saying: “I am not a bastard. I have honour to protect.
The man who contested the election had conceded defeat. I should now be the one
to say that the party would not accept defeat? When the candidate was picking
his phone to congratulate the winner, did he consult with the party?”
Thank God that he toed the path of wisdom.
ReplyDeleteWhen una lies and propaganda go finish.
ReplyDeleteThose military officers have think and reason well for rejecting the coup plan. GOD bless Nigeria Ameen
ReplyDeleteSheer nonsense
ReplyDeleteNigeria military cannot stage a coup any longer in this country because of its complexity. They would have been flushed out of power disgracefully.
ReplyDelete