Jonathan Hits Gov Kwankwaso: You’re Desperate and A Failure

Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso used to be President Goodluck Jonathan's favourite man because of the number of voters he controls in Kano State. But since he dumped the PDP and swept off Jonathan's feet from his state things have not been the same, he is now called all sorts of names by the Presidency. In what appears as President Jonathan’s response to Governor Kwankwaso’s allegation that the President is out to kill him, 2 ministers apparently acting on behalf of Jonathan blasted the governor in Abuja on Friday. Separate statements issued by the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, and Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Abdul Jelili Adesiyan, described Kwankwaso as “being desperate and paranoid.”

They added that Kwankwaso’s outburst against Jonathan was the height of irresponsibility and an indication of a failed governor. In the statement signed on behalf of Maku by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Joseph Mutah, the minister said the governor was engaging in a campaign of calumny against Jonathan and the Federal Government. Maku said, “It is a known fact that the appointment of traditional rulers is within the purview of state governments and it is surprising why Kwankwaso has chosen to drag the name of the President into the succession crisis rocking the Kano Emirate. “Instead of throwing tantrums and casting aspersions on imaginary enemies, Kwankwaso should face the people of Kano and explain to them the role he and APC leaders played in the imbroglio. “The Police in Kano have offered explanations why officers and men were deployed to guard the palace of the Emir, yet Governor Kwankwaso decided to further his unbridled campaign of blackmail against the President and the Federal Government. “The recent outbursts of Kwankwaso have lent credence to observations in some quarters that the governor is now afraid of his own shadow as the people of Kano become increasingly impatient with his years of one-man rule under which he imposes his will on the state in total disregard to the wishes of the people.” But writing on his Twitter page, Gov Kwankwaso had said his government followed the same process which his counterpart in Gombe State, Alhaji Ibrahim Dankwambo, adopted in appointing the Emir of Gombe. He, therefore, wondered why the President should cause crisis in Kano State and accused him of plotting an “agenda which is not good for this country.” He said if anything happen to him, Jonathan should be held responsible based on information at his disposal. Asked to react to the ministers’ attack on Kwankwaso, the governor's media aide, Baba Dantiye, said: “We have no comments on such. We are busy.”