Forget 2015 Presidency, Northern Youths Tell Buhari
Jibril Vatsa, son of former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, the late Major-Gen. Mamman Vatsa, leading other northern youths under the aegis of the Concerned Northern Youths Forum, on Tuesday asked former Head of State and presidential candidate for the Congress for Progressive Change, Major-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to forget contesting the 2015 presidential election. Vatsa, who is the Coordinator of the forum, noted that the former military head of state could no longer be trusted with power because of his unguarded utterrances.
He also asked Buhari, whom his late father worked with as FCT minister, and his new party to “not drag President Goodluck Jonathan and the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Pastor Ayo
Oritsejafor, into their affairs.”
The forum, in a statement on Tuesday in Kaduna, was reacting to a statement in which the former head of state accused the CAN president of working for the Presidency ahead of the 2015 presdential election.
The CAN president had earlier called for the arrest of Buhari over some comments credited to him, where he said the Nigerian military personnel in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States were killing innocent civilians and destroying their homes.
Vatsa also described as unforunate comments credited to the former head of state, accusing CAN of working for Jonathan too realise his presdential ambition in 2015, saying Buhari could no longer be trusted.
Vatsa, “In 2003, when Buhari was reported to have asked Muslims to vote for only Muslim candidates, he claimed he was misquoted.
In 2011, after the presidential poll, when his inciting statement forced some northern youths to go on the rampage, Buhari claimed he was misquoted. Again in 2012, similar things were said by him ahead of the 2015 elections, if they are not free and fair, he claimed he was misquoted. Buhari can therefore not be trusted.
“We disagree with General Muhammadu Buhari that Oritsejafor’s statement “is lacking in facts” as presented by him. As northerners, who are concerned about the terrible state of the socio-political and economic activities in the North, we expect to see northern elders sit up to put their house in order.”