YAR’ADUA DEFIED MY ADVICE, ADMITTED MASSIVE 2007 ELECTION IRREGULARITIES

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By Oduola F.A.

Former National Secretary of the defunct Social Democratic Party and ex-Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has revealed that late President Umaru Yar’Adua disregarded his counsel and went on to acknowledge widespread irregularities in the 2007 election.

In a passage from his autobiography, Being True to Myself, released on May 13, Lamido recalled advising Yar’Adua to revise a statement intended for the National Council of State. Rather than saying “in view of the large-scale irregularities in the conduct of the last elections,” Lamido suggested the President use “in view of the desire to reform our electoral system.”

However, in Chapter 11 of the book, titled The Yar’Adua Presidency, Lamido recalled that the late President stood firm and went on to describe the election that brought him to power as massively irregular.

He stated, “Yar’Adua’s stubbornness manifested at our first National Council of State meeting with him as president. For those not familiar with the composition of the National Council of State, it is made up of the President and the Vice President, all state Governors, former Heads of State, serving and former Chief Justices of the Federation, with the incumbent president as chairman. The first memo to be presented at that Council of State Meeting by President Yar’Adua was on Electoral Reforms.

“I went through the memo and became uncomfortable with the preamble, which started thus: “In view of the large-scale irregularities in the conduct of the last elections…” In the morning, before the council convened, I went to the President’s office and asked him whether he had read the memo he is presenting to the Council.

“He said, Yes Sule, I did. I said, I suggest you read it again. He opened the file which contained the memos. Yes Sule, I have read it, he said.”

Lamido recalled that he encouraged Yar’Adua to review the memo once more, noting that, “Sir, why don’t you re-phrase it to ‘in view of the desire to reform our electoral system’, rather than describing it as ‘irregular’? The way I see it, you are denouncing your own mandate by implication. But Yar’Adua remained unmoved.”

The former Jigawa State Governor said to drive the point to him, he said, “Sir, in the Council you are going to chair, President Obasanjo who conducted your election is there; the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN Katsina-Alu who cast the winning vote, the tie-breaker, to uphold your election at the Supreme Court is there; and yet you described the election as massively irregular? What do you think of their honour and integrity?

“Again, he remained unfazed. I left his office in utter bewilderment and more confused, but not before telling him, ‘if your election was irregular, mine was free, fair and transparent.

“When the Council convened, President Yar’Adua read the memo, describing his own election as being ‘massively irregular’. I looked across the Council and observed the utter shock and bewilderment of President Obasanjo and Justice Katsina-Alu. I turned my gaze to President Yar’Adua who appeared unconcerned and totally indifferent to the thick atmosphere in the Council.”

Lamido suggested that the memo might have been the key factor that triggered the fallout between President Obasanjo and President Yar’Adua.