Buhari: I’ll Continue to Hold Jonathan in High Esteem for Yielding Power
Muhammadu-Buhari
- Says Boko Haram will soon be history
By Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja
A President Muhammadu Buhari has praised his predecessor, former President Goodluck Jonathan for voluntarily conceding defeat to him after the 2015 presidential elections.
Buhari, who poured encomiums on the former president at a dinner he hosted for Kannywood entertainers at the Presidential Villa, recently, stated that he would continue to hold the former president in high esteem for that selfless act.
The president, who addressed his guests in Hausa, also condemned the dastardly acts of Boko Haram, stating that the group would be distroyed.
While praising the former president for willingly yielding power to him, Buhari said he was puzzled that Jonathan, after being in power for several years, would voluntarily hand over power to him. “I will continue to hold former President Jonathan in high esteem as a result of that singular act.
“He was in power as deputy governor, governor, vice-president and president, all for about 10 years and he voluntarily accepted defeat and surrendered power to me.”
Addressing Boko Haram and its terrorist acts, the president promised to wipe off the insurgent group outright, adding that it was senseless for a group of people to shout Allahu Akbar (God is great) on one hand and gruesomely hack worshippers of the same God in places of worship.
“You can’t be shouting Allahu Akbar (Allah is Great), Allahu Akbar, and killing innocent citizens and destroying properties, all in the name of God.”
Buhari’s resolve to deal decisively with Boko Haram came amid increasing and deadly activities of the group, in recent times, which included the mindless murder of Hauwa Liman, a Midwife working with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), on Monday, barely a month after they murdered an aid worker, Saifura Khorsa.
The president told his guests that it was wrong for a group which claimed to be religious to storm churches and mosques to destroy innocent lives.
He said such destructive activities only showed that the insurgents were either confused or did not even know what they were doing, insisting that they would ultimately be distroyed.
“It is either you don’t know what you are saying or you don’t even believe in the existence of God Almighty. God has nothing to do with injustice.
“So, now we are confronting them and by the grace of God we will destroy them,” the president stated.
Also speaking at the event, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, expressed hope that Buhari would garner 5 million votes from the fans of the entertainers at the forthcoming 2019 presidential poll. Mustapha also thanked the entertainers for their contributions to Buhari’s victory in 2015, imploring them to repeat the feat in 2019.
The entertainers yielded to the pleas, promising to widely mobilise support not only for Buhari but also for other All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates at the forthcoming elections.
