PRESIDENT
Goodluck Jonathan yesterday night denied signing any pact or single
term agreement with anybody, saying “I didn’t sign agreement with
anybody, if I have signed agreement with anybody he would have shown
you”.Answering questions during the Presidential Media Chat last night as part of the programmes, marking the 53rd Independence Anniversary of Nigeria, Jonathan said he would concentrate on how to deliver on his mandate to Nigerians.
However, Jonathan hinted that if Nigerians had agreed with the single tenure he suggested previously, “I wouldn’t have been involved in the process”.
He declared that his declaration of presidential ambition for 2015 general election will create crisis within the political system, even as he stated that it is too early for him to declare his intention to contest.
Jonathan, who noted that there are electoral laws governing the conduct of elections and regulating the political activities, added that declaration of his ambition now or by any other aspiring candidate would definitely create crisis in the polity.
He said “we have laws in this country and I appreciate the fact that our electoral laws tend to regulate the political activities. The electoral law gives the INEC the timetable to follow. If you do it earlier you will distablise government, whether it is Jonathan or any other person that has right to contest.
“You don’t declare intention now because it will distablise political process. Electoral law has the timetable for political parties and individuals to declare his intention. It is not yet time to declare intention.
“My declaration or not does not stop anybody from declaring intention. You don’t need to wait for me to say I am contesting or not before you declare your intention if you are interested. So, if you want to contest, you don’t need to wait for Jonathan”.
President Jonathan described the strike by university lecturers as unfortunate, declaring that the action has serious political undertone.
“Why should a state university lecturer go on strike for a federal problem?, the president queried.
The president noted that the strike had political colouration giving the commitment of the current administration to address the challenges of university education and the refusal of ASUU to call off the strike despite the fact that government has conceded to many of their demands in the 2009 agreement.
Jonathan, however, stressed that there are some items in the agreement that are implementable such as the demand for transfer of government landed property to universities.
The earned allowances, the President explained are supposed to be paid from the internally generated revenues of the universities.
He added that as part of government commitment to transform the nation’s universities, he set up Needs Assessment Committee who visited all public universities in Nigeria to take inventory of the institutions.
He regretted that ASUU has failed to recognize government in this direction, insisting that there have been many strikes in this country and those strikes were without such commitment as demonstrated his government.
Even though, he stated that his commitment is total to make changes, but he hinted at the need to revisit our labour laws because of the excesses of the trade unions.
“We will begin to look at the labour laws because of the excesses of labour unions,” he said.
President Jonathan used the occasion to call on the Academic Staff Union of Universities to call off the strike in the interest of Nigeria and the children.
President Jonathan who stated that the security situation has improved significantly as the government has put in place measures to effectively check the Boko Haram insurgencies, especially after the bombing of UN building and the Police Headquarters in Abuja, however said “ I dont know if Shekau is dead or alive”.
Against what people were saying, the President said that Boko Haram is not the creation of his government but started when he was the Vice President and the leader of the sect was killed.
On when terrorism will come to an end, the president said, I am not God, i can”t say terrorism wont happen again.
“The excesses of Boko Haram, started with the bombing of Mammy market in Abuja, the UN building and Police Headquarters. We quickly built up capacity after that to stem the insurgence.
He assured that within the limit of human competence, his government will see that such attacks did not occur especially in Abuja.
On the recent Apo killings, President Jonathan stated that from the security briefing he received, there were Boko Haram elements in the place who had confrontation with security agents.
On the sacking of the Ministers, the President said it has nothing to do with the G7 Governors, saying that it was a normal and common process in
governance to reshuffle cabinet from time to time and wondered why his own move should generate such public interest.
The president also said he has no need for a Minister of Defence, saying the service chiefs are primarily responsible for the defence of the nation.
He explained that the low-key celebration of the 53rd Independence anniversary has nothing to do with the security challenges in the country, even as he stated that until 2014, his government will not do any elaborate ceremony.
On the economic front, the President said that Nigeria is not broke, as he noted the World outside has a favourable report of the Nigeria’s economy.
How can anybody wake up from a dream and say the country is bankrupt? Nigeria is not bankrupt.
Corruption is not Nigerias number one problem, corruption is as old as the human race, he added.
The President admitted that the stealing of crude oil is done by the power and mighty in the society, who are very rich and have cartel in the countries where the stolen oil are being sold.
Jonathan, who expressed hope for the future of the country, noted that the standard of life has improved significantly, even though he stated Nigeria still has its challenges.
But he added that the current challenges confronting Nigeria were peculiar to developing nations.
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