Director of Special Duties II at the All Progressives Congress APC Presidential Campaign Council PCC and chieftain of the party from Delta State, Chief Ayiri Emami has affirmed claims by Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai to the effect that some elements in the Presidential Villa were working with fifth columnists to sabotage the APC presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
Speaking in an interview with Vanguard in Abuja, Chief Emami said the “Villa Cabal” wanted to install a stooge as President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor.
Tinubu had at a recent event in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, alleged of plans to scuttle his ambition using the ongoing fuel scarcity and non-availability of the new Naira notes.
Also speaking on a national television pasta week, El-Rufai alleged that certain elements in the Presidency whose preferred candidate lost out in the APC Presidential Convention where Tinubu emerged as standard bearer were the arrowhead of the plot to sabotage the APC presidential candidate.
The APC chieftain from Delta State maintained that the elements are afraid of a successor with a strong social and political network as well as the independence of mind to develop and execute policies of the government.
He said; “Let me use myself as an example. Even in our small community, if you know your right and you know what you are doing and you want to lead, many people will come after you because a lot of people don’t want somebody who understands the system, to lead, because all they know is how to manipulate.
“Asiwaju knows the inner workings of governance. I am not saying that he knows it all. So, you will see every day, all kinds of battles or blackmail to stop him and that is how I see Asiwaju. He knows a lot about governance. He knows what to do to make sure that this place works. And if it works, there are persons there doing dubious things who would not be able to do them again. So, if such a person is to take over, it won’t be an easy battle because they know that he knows the inner workings of government and can’t be manipulated”.
The APC chieftain noted that with the revelations coming from the APC Governors’ meeting last Friday with President Buhari it is now clear to Nigerians that the Naira swap policy did not enjoy the buy-in of the APC-led administration at all levels.
“They are not policies of the APC at all. Because if they were the policies of the APC, everybody would be involved. These are policies of a few persons to sabotage Tinubu. Why introduce such policies during the election?”, He queried.
Asked to comment on the perceived indifference of President Buhari to the APC Presidential candidate’s campaign, Chief Emami said it was not indicative of any lack of commitment or cold war between Tinubu and Buhari.
“To me, even his own election, it was other people who were actually championing his campaign. So, I just feel that that is his normal style. All humans are not the same. Tinubu is a workaholic, during the 2014/2015, he did that. At a time, even during the primary, somebody who was contesting, like President Muhammadu Buhari said I don’t have money to give to the delegates. For example, if he was not the one contesting, people would have said this man is a wicked man. Then, he was the one contesting and he could make that kind of statement in the public while canvassing for votes at the campaign ground.
To me, it is his lifestyle, even if he is supporting you, he is not the type that comes out to the public and say it. But what we are trying to see is that those saboteurs within should please retreat. Let us go into a proper contest. I don’t see any problem. To me, I know that Buhari is supporting us because he had said it publicly and that is one Muslim man that I believe that once he swears by the Quran, he stands by it.”
