President Goodluck Jonathan paid a secret visit
to former Vice President Abubakar Atiku on
Friday night to hold a meeting that lasted till the
early hours of Saturday.
Presidency sources told Sahara Reporters that
Jonathan went to Atiku’s home with the aim of
persuading the former VP to lead a so called
interim government of national unity that the
president has been covertly attempting to sell to
numerous political figures in recent weeks.
One source said Jonathan and some hawkish
members of his inner circle, including Petroleum
Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, First Lady
Patience Jonathan, Governors Olusegun Mimiko
and Ayo Fayose of Ondo and Ekiti respectively,
as well as senior presidential aide Doyin Okupe,
have decided that handing over power to
Muhammadu Buhari "is out of the question."
Many electoral monitoring groups are projecting
that Buhari, a retired general and the presidential
candidate of the APC, is the odds-on favorite to
win the March 28 presidential election.
When SaharaReporters reached Atiku, he
expressed surprise that we knew about his
meeting with President Jonathan. He asserted
that the idea of his heading an interim
government did not come up during the long
discussion with the president.
Atiku said he had retired to bed when he was
woken up and told that President Jonathan had
come to see him, adding that the president was
already waiting in his living room.
After denying that he was asked to head an
interim government, the former vice president
admitted that Jonathan tried to prevail on him
to rejoin the PDP. He disclosed that he rejected
the invitation outright.
According to Atiku, the president also discussed
the ongoing war against Boko Haram insurgents,
asking for support for Nigerian troops fighting in
the area. He said they also discussed the
possibility of displaced Nigerians returning to the
areas that have been recaptured from Boko
Haram.
Asked by our reporter whether he thought
President Jonathan was interested in allowing
elections to hold on March 28, the former vice
president hesitated before stating that he would
not wish to speculate, but he said the
president’s body language did not reveal that he
was interested in the elections that are
scheduled to hold in two weeks .
In his telephone interview with Sahara Reporters,
Atiku disclosed that he is opposed to the
formation of an interim government. He stated
that when former military dictator, Ibrahim
Babangida, set up an interim national
government in 1993, the dictator offered him a
position in the government through the late
General Shehu Yar’Adua. He said he rejected the
position, adding that it was eventually given to a
Lagos politician Dapo Sarumi.
Asked further about the substance of his
conversation with Jonathan, Atiku said advised
the president to ensure that the elections are
free and fair and devoid of the bloodshed that
trailed the 2011 elections.
