Ijaw national leader and former Minister of Information, Chief Edwin Clark, has lambasted former President Olusegun Obasanjo for making disparaging remarks against former President Goodluck Jonathan and the Ijaw nation.

The octogenarian also accused Obasanjo of distorting facts on Ijaws, pretending to be holier than others and fathering corruption in the country.

Clark expressed his disdain for Obadanjo’s dispositions in a strong-worded thesis-like open letter titled: “Re: Your Mischievous and Malicious tirade against the Ijaws”, electronically made available to journalists on Wednesday.

The elder statesman, in an angry tone, queried what offence Jonathan, many Ijaws had committed against him that he takes delight in denigrating the ethnic group with false and maliciously contrived tropes and accusations.

“Nigerians who are worshipping you should re-examine themselves. What do they owe to you?

“You, who sold all national assets of Nigeria including the Nigerian shipping line, Nigerian Airways, Nitel, Nigeria houses and institutions, you sold everything except Aso Rock.

“You sold Delta Steel Company (DSC) through your son to the Indians who could not pay for it and manage it.

“Same thing you did with Ajaokuta Steel. So, who are you to talk about corruption in Nigeria?

“You appointed your daughter as the director of a non-existing LNG in Olokola. You should re-examine yourself if you are well.

“No sane man will parade himself as an honest man when he knows that he is a corrupt man.

“You sold Nicon Noga Hilton, which became Transcorp Hilton to yourself and others against the advice given to you by your kitchen cabinet.

“You are a shameless fellow who must not speak when decent Nigerians are speaking. You caused all the problems of Nigeria.

“You are the initiator of corruption in Nigeria. You masterminded it, legalised it and what corruption is today you caused.

“And you pretend as if you are not corrupt. You corrupted the National Assembly then you turned round to call them armed robbers and thieves.

“Whereas you were as corrupt as they were. You should stop parading yourself shamelessly as an honest man.

“You should re-examine yourself, both in your personal life and in your public life.

“My dear former President, what do you really want from Jonathan and the Ijaw people?

“Most of the various issues you raised in collaboration with Olusegun Adeniyi’s book “Against the Run of Play” are mere re-visitation of the many things you did and failed to do in your eight years of mis-governance,” Clark averred.

Clark, who also critiqued some information contained in Obasanjo’s book, “My Watch”, accused Adeniyi, former media aide to late President Umaru Yar’Adua, of being used by Obasanjo to distort and rewrite some narratives about Jonathan as well as correct some information on Obasanjo contained in “Power, Politics and Death’.

Clark’s statement reads further thus: “I received several calls from Nigeria recently while in London about a new book being presented by Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi, former Special Advisor on Media to our most revered late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

“Olusegun Adeniyi had earlier written a book after the death of his master President Yar’Adua. In that book titled “Power, Politics and Death” he made some very unpalatable remarks about you the former President of Nigeria who nominated and sponsored President Yar’Adua’s presidency.

“Olusegun Adeniyi later apologised to you for the unpalatable statements he made against you and promised not to do so again. That was not enough; he later wrote an apology to you in Lagos and promised to make amends.

“I am therefore not surprised that Olusegun Adeniyi has now fulfilled his promise to you by writing a new book titled “Against the Run of Play” where he now used his new book to give you more room to insult the Ijaw people and to authenticate your three volume book “Under my Watch”.

“For instance, some of the statements you made against me in your book “Under My Watch” were the same statements you repeated in Olusegun Adeniyi’s book, which is an arrangement between the two of you to condemn the Ijaws and to incite other Nigerian leaders to disparage the Ijaw leaders particularly myself and the younger ones like Asari Dokubo whom you kept in prison for two years without trial until we begged you to release him.

“Otherwise, in your narration in Olusegun Adeniyi’s new book there’s nothing you said, which you had not said in you despicable and false and self-aggrandised book containing assertions and character which you do not possess yet you are assassinating the character and libelling of patriotic and decent leaders and people of Nigeria including innocent late President Yar’Adua and President Jonathan.

“What character has a man who was a Head of State and president of a country with over 180 million people and who is now 80 years old being accused by his own eldest son Mr Gbenga Obasanjo of sleeping with his wife and thereby doubting the paternity of his children and leading to the divorce of the marriage of which you did not show any remorse.

What character has this man? Your eldest daughter Senator Iyabo Obasanjo whom you alleged in your book “under my watch” that she was been used by the government to assassinate your character.

“Again I ask what character has this man.However you concluded that Iyabo fell into the trap of the government because she has the same character as her mother.

“Dr Jonathan was my candidate and I have a right to campaign for him using the usual campaign languages used by all politicians and there was nothing that we said to infuriate or to insult Nigerian as you are falsely and maliciously impressing on Nigerians.

“For instance, you said in Olusegun Adeniyi’s book that the late DSP Alamieyeseigha, former governor of Bayelsa State, whom you hated and destroyed, had no reason to say “that there’s no vacancy in Aso rock on May 21, 2013 when he was campaigning for Jonathan”. Whereas another PDP leader from Niger State, Governor Babangida Aliyu, also stated on September 18, 2014 that there was no vacancy in Aso Rock when he was addressing youths of Niger State who wanted him to contest the Presidency.

“Whereas also in 2003 Chief Anthony Anenih also declared there was no vacancy in Aso Rock because you must be returned as President of Nigeria.

“The same Anenih told Atiku during his campaign for Jonathan in 2014 that there was no vacancy in Aso Rock in 2015. As Nigerians, we are free to campaign for any candidate we believe in whether he or she is from our ethnic nationality, from our zone, from our state or the same religion as us and or political party. This is the situation all over the world.”

Speaking on Obasanjo’s hatred for Jonathan and how he frustrated the latter’s second term presidential bid in 2015, Clark narrated that Obasanjo “told Adeniyi that your rejection of Jonathan was a culmination of misdeeds by Jonathan over the years.

“On April 3, 2012 you resigned as the chairman of the Board of Trustees of PDP to show your disdain for Jonathan and two months later you condemned Jonathan’s inability to fight corruption in Nigeria.

“You carried your campaign of calumny against Jonathan to an international conference held in Switzerland in Club de Madrid, where you lambasted Jonathan for ineffectiveness, rudeness and corrupt practices.”

•Text courtesy of Nigerian Tribune.

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