Bode George calls for reasoning and commonsense in Nigerian polity The Fifth columnists have started their noise again. They have started their campaign of hate and malice and destruction. They want to return us to the cycle of chaos and mindlessness. We will not allow it to happen. We will not allow them to drag us down again. PDP will remain strong and firm. PDP will remain a party with a vision; we will remain a party with a purpose and a progressive mission. We will remain focused. We will remain united. We will continue to work very hard to dismantle the agents of Bola Tinubu from our midst and from all the nooks and crannies of the South West. That is our mission. That is our collective challenge. Let us move forward and seize our fortunes with our hands. We are happy that we can now identify the moles planted by the former ACN in our party. God will not allow them to succeed. While I was out of the country the agents destabilization have said all kinds of things about me and about all our distinguished leaders in the South West. They abused former President Olusegun Obasanjo, they abused former Governors Olusegun Oni, Olagunsoye, Oyinlola, Gbenga Daniel and many others. They think it is fanciful to scandalize and trample upon the good men and women who built our great party from the scratch. We will not keep quiet and watch while our leaders and their good deeds are being rubbished by these little men who have no principle and who have nothing to treasure. What is our offense? Why are they abusing us now? Well, we insist on common sense and the strict adherence to the constitution of our party. We insist that no one can cut corners. We insist on fairness and justice. When the man who was imposed on us as the care-taker vice-chairman of the South West Zone of our party approached me that he would like to contest the very seat he is presently occupying, I told him bluntly that his intention is against all the tenets of our party constitution, and that it contradicts all the ingredients of morality and good sense. The guideline of the National Executive Committee of our party eventually spelt out this same observation. It strictly disallows all the current interim executives from succeeding themselves. That is good sense. That is the way it has always been. Now, where is our offense in this issue? As I really do not want to join issues with these men of little value, I insist that there are certain significant observations one must still make for the sake of posterity because of the reckless innuendoes, half truths and sheer falsehoods that are being peddled by these characters. I was right there in the early, formative days when we all crisscrossed all the nooks and crannies of the whole South West preaching, cajoling, begging our people to follow the People’s Democratic Party. We visited all the great cities and little towns. We visited all the hamlets and villages. From Eiye nkorin in Oyo State to Ifewara in Osun, to ilaje waterside in Ondo, to Aramoko in Ekiti, Ado-odo in Ogun State and far into the swamps and waters of Eredo in Lagos State. We had a vision and a strong belief in helping the underdog, in making life better for the less fortunate. We wanted to positively affect the lives of all our people without discrimination. We wanted to help the average farmer to boost his harvest. We wanted to help the fisherman, the carpenter, the tailor, the artisan, the blue collar workers, the civil servants, so that they can be more productive and effective in their jobs. We were never interested in making money for ourselves. Our higher goal is about sacrifice. It is about selflessness. It is about investing in the future of our people. We stood firm and alert. We stood with the truth. We fought for a good cause. We stood doggedly with our leader Chief Olusegun Obasanjo without demanding for personal gains and benefits. I want to now use this opportunity to salute these courageous men and women who brought the typical quality of the Omoluabi to the early days of the People’s Democratic Party. It was the collective efforts of these men and women that gave us the victory in Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo. In Lagos we were betrayed, stabbed in the back by enemies within. The victories in the five states in 2003 were achieved because we all agreed instinctively that “Igi kan ko le da Igbo se” “Agba jowo la fin soya” Now, let us honor these men and women who fought for the truth, who fought for the dignity and growth of our people: Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, late Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, late Chief S.M Afolabi, late Alhaji Haruna Elewi, late Chief Babs Akerele, Chief Dapo Sarumi, Chief Mrs. Aduke Maina, Prince Kola Balogun, Chief Soboyede, Chief Bakare Oluwalogbon, Dr. Olusegun Agagu, Professor Aborishade, Elder Wole Oyelese, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, Alhaji Yekeen Adeojo, Ambassador Soule, Chief Abiola Ogundokun, Alhaji Fatai Akingbade, Chief Sola Obada, Professor Adeniran, Chief Awoyelu, late Chief A.M.A Akinloye, Chief Richard Akinjide, Chief Lekan Mustapha, Chief Jubril Martins Kuye, Chief Yinka Omilani, late Chief Kolapo Ishola, Alhaji Isiaka Adeleke, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Chief Ayo Fayose, Prince Oyinlola, Engineer Segun Oni, Engineer Kamal Giwa, Prince Demola Adeniji-Adele, Chief Ogunlade(Bin Laden),Chief Tajudeen Oladipo Laide Adeniran,Dare Adeleke, Mrs Roli Bode George, Sola Oladehinbo, Tunde Olorogun, Professor Femi Otubanjo and many others too numerous to mention. These were the well-born Omoluabis who defined the logic, the character, the mission, the vision and the ultimate success that we achieved. They all asked for nothing but the truth, good character, good breeding and solid family background. Alas, things appear to be different now with the present crop of interim leadership in the South West. The so called care-taker team is without any root, without any progressive agenda. They just want to hang on, scavenging for handouts from anywhere they can get it. That is not the Yoruba way. That is not the way of victory. That is not the way of dignity and righteousness I have nothing to hide. My pedigree and antecedents are well known and unhidden. My family is fearless but God-fearing. My convoluted trial and tribulations are very well spelt out in the public purview. I have served my country with honor and distinction at various positions the good Lord has deemed fit to put me. We were tried by the law made by the Lagos state House of Assembly deliberately to remove us out of circulation for political purposes. Even Festus Keyamo who was hand picked to hound us has revealed who he had been working for all along. Alas , he has joined BolaTinubu’s APC ! ”Aje ke la na Omo ku leni , tani ko mo pe aje lo pa omo!” It is a matter of public record that at NPA, despite the deliberate evil planted by man, our Board put in place a Concessionary scheme which raised the revenue base to an incredible profitable height. This is the scheme they are still benefitting from today. But all is well. I never benefitted one kobo from the alleged contract splitting. Even the compromised judge could not hide this fact. He said as much that we did not benefit from the orchestrated accusation. And most importantly, I have appealed to the highest court in our land where justice will prevail by the Grace of God. But ultimately we must all answer to the judgment of God Almighty which is superior to everything else. My appeal now is to well meaning, God-fearing party leaders and all the Omoluabi in our party to come together and let us work very hard for our collective victory. We must never let freeloaders take over the party. We must go to the zonal party congress and the national convention to elect new party managers who will raise the bar of leadership to an enviable level not only in the South West but in the nation at large. We must ensure that not one member of the present caretaker committee returns to the seat. They have no business with selfless service. What they understand is: ”Where is my own share!” I will be shocked if any of them is even allowed to appear at the screening level! The should be showed the way out! We must elect God-fearing, well bred, devoted, capable, industrious, and intelligent men and women who will chase the opposition forces out of town. We must elect those who believe in honour, service and sacrifice. We must elect those who will not trade our mandate for a personal survival at Bourdillon. The real enemy is the opposition. We must uproot them from the South West whether they are called ACN or APC! Let us all uproot the enemies within. Enough of backbiting. Enough of saboteurs and their destructive reflexes. Enough of the hide and seek game. We know who the enemy is. We know your game plan. You will not succeed. You will fail woefully. You will be consumed and destroyed by your own treachery. The words of the Lord are clear: “Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plant they will soon die away … A little while the wicked will be no more; though you look for them they will not be found.. but the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace” The real enemy is the man that stole the city hall. The enemy is the Iragbiji upstart who seized the local government Secretariat at Glover street in Ikoyi. Our collective enemy is the greedy man who bought the old Nurses House, the Falomo shopping complex, the Lagos state Polytechnic property at Ojota, the stretches of acres at Lekki, the old Strabag yard at Alausa, the innumerable beach front properties long owned by the people of Lagos state, the billion naira Queen’s Drive mansion, the illegal Lekki Toll Gate, the First Nation Airline, the strings of media conglomerates, the Vault and Garden Cemetery, the vast Estates on the shores of Oniru beach , the endless choice hotels and high-rises, the shopping Mall in Ikeja and Lekki, and many great assets of our people this Iragbiji man has stolen with manic desperation. That is the real enemy we must chase back to Iraghiji. With all these crazy and bewildering acquisitions , it is obvious that this Iragbiji upstart suffers from a disease called AFFLUENZA. It is an incurable malady which makes the pathetic sufferer to pursue blind, greedy, desperate and infectious craving for acquisition after acquisition. Here , the demented sufferer can never stop the craving for unnecessary endless accumulation of wealth. He does not know what is enough. Here wealth is glorified in place of the Almighty God. This is the dreadful disease Tinubu is suffering from. Let the good people, the real Omoluabi , work with our genuine God-fearing leaders for our total victory in the South West. Let us remove and dismantle the greedy contraption of Bola Tinubu from Lagos and the whole South West before the madness of the Iragbiji man corrupts the whole nation. We will never surrender nor compromise with those who are selling off our heritage. We will fight them in the trenches, we will fight them in the daylight and in the shadows to retrieve our stolen commonwealth. We will work at home and in the frontiers for the survival and progress of our people. We will work with President Jonathan for the transformation of our nation. We also urge our governors to stay the course and work hand in hand with our President for the greater good of our nation . APC is hardly a credible option for God-fearing people . These same characters who are eager to criticize a listening and God-fearing leader like President Jonathan just revealed that they are not suitable for leadership at all. Nigerians should never trust the man that recklessly sealed up Chief Orji Kalu’s house because the man told them the truth about the illegal deportation of fellow Nigerians from the Nigerian soil. These people are totally intolerant of opposite views. They are tyrannical rulers who should never be trusted at all by Nigerians. Let the moles beware. They will no longer have room to maneuver. They will no longer have anywhere to hide. This is not the time for divided loyalty. The leaders that planted his wife in Accord and his son in ACN and at once claims he is in PDP and wants to lead the Yoruba people must indeed be a confused man. Nobody will trust such a man. Let him search his soul. Let him look into his conscience because in the end, he must answer to his God. We know those who are desperate. We know those who are behind the campaign of hate and malice. We know they are throwing stones from behind the curtain. But the Almighty God has revealed them for who they really are. The man who cannot control his house has no business scheming for leadership of the party talkless of the leadership of our people. He will fail. He has failed because darkness can never prevail over light. There is another character throwing tantrums, making desperate noise, huffing and puffing in the shadows, running about in crazy, hysterical emptiness. This man of total inconsequential presence was practically chased out of the Alliance for Democracy for his untidy, questionable book-keeping at a government agency. He ran to us for help and refuge. He came into PDP alone, except for three other men that accompanied him. This man whom I will never dignify even to mention his name, was very desperate then and he still remains desperate today. “Haba, obun opa aso esi da!” “O de da mi loo ju pe Odo ti o ba ti oju eni kun ko le gbe yan lo o! Let there be no doubt about it. The struggle now is not about my generation. It is about you and you and you! It is about every member of the young generation out there. My own personal commitment now is to do whatever the good lord has empowered me to do to ensure that the future of the younger generation is far better than our own. And this can only be done when we stand with the Truth, when we boldly confront the oppressors of today. It is a rough road, but we will get there, God willing! Let us confront the modern oppressors who are presently deporting fellow Nigerians from the streets of Lagos. What madness! Lagos has always been a liberal, accommodating place. We don’t turn people away. Since the ancient days of Oba Akinsemoyin, (the great monarch who erected a white flag on the shores of Lagos to welcome the first Europeans) lagos has always welcome everyone with open arms. This is the home of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. This is the home of Dadi Onyema. This is the home of Ernest Ikoli. This is the home of Dr. Kingsley Mbadiwe, the man of timber and caliber. We in PDP will stand firmly with our fellow brothers and sisters from the East. They should disregard the current interlopers. PDP will take you in. PDP is your friend. PDP is your family here in Lagos. Even as I speak the Atlantic Ocean is sweeping through villages and hamlets across the Lekki Peninsula, thanks to the crazy Atlantic City scheme of Bola Tinubu, the man who should be deported back to Iragbiji. From the beaches of Kuramo to Oniru, Elegushi, Ilasan, Jakande, Maiyegun, Ologolo, Igbo-Efon and Alpha Beach, Lagos is now sinking very fast because Tinubu in his greed has assaulted the rhythms of nature. The villages are now swept in tidal waters, ruining lives and properties, reducing thousands into homelessness . May God help us all with Tinubu’s hair-brain idea that is now throwing the shores of Lagos into the angry ocean. At this juncture I want to urge our people to please be patient. You have not been abandoned. Our President believes in you and cares for you. He has agreed to give us the necessary support. Let us work together to make him succeed. In conclusion, I want to leave you with the words of the great soldier and a statesman, Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt was an instinctive warrior, a fearless, bold, defiant man who was not afraid to speak truth to power, who acted with courageous principle and a daring frontier’s vision. At a time while others cringed and kept their peace, he led the group of volunteers known as the Rough Riders to take arms against the Spanish Invaders in Cuba in the 19th century. At 42, Roosevelt was the youngest person ever to occupy the seat of the President of the United States. At the height of his fame and greatest challenges, Roosevelt had observed: “the credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best if he wins, knows the thrills of high achievements, and, if he fails, at least fails daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat”. The Rooseveltian moral is clear. Let us stand up and be known for a tangible cause. This is the essence of a meaningful life. We must stand up to be counted when it matters most. We must stand up for what is right and just. We must stand up to be identified with a good cause. We must not remain quiet and be indifferent in the face of tyranny. We must make sacrifices. We must help our fellow man who is in need. We must support the dispossessed and the hungry.We must give succor to the homeless in Ajegunle, lift up the broken and despaired people in Makoko, align and give hope to the millions maltreated and trampled upon by Tinubu and his gang. We must speak out boldly against evil. We must never be afraid of any man. We must never trade the truth to serve the hour. We must be pure in heart and spirit. We must confront the wrongs in our society with the powers of the light. We must speak against the prevailing darkness and shout at the rooftops. We must always commit ourselves to what is right and appropriate. We must always be guided and motivated by the fear of God. This is my life. This has always been my vision. This is where I stand. May God be with you all. -Being a text delivered by Chief Bode George at a Press Conference held at PDP office recently.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Aug 2013 08:52:53 +0000
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