President Goodluck Jonathan paid a secret visit to former Vice President Abubakar Atiku on Friday night to hold a meeting that lasted till the early hours of Saturday.
Presidency sources told Sahara Reporters that Jonathan went to Atiku’s home with the aim of persuading the former VP to lead a so called interim government of national unity that the president has been covertly attempting to sell to numerous political figures in recent weeks.
One source said Jonathan and some hawkish members of his inner circle, including Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, First Lady Patience Jonathan, Governors Olusegun Mimiko and Ayo Fayose of Ondo and Ekiti respectively, as well as senior presidential aide Doyin Okupe, have decided that handing over power to Muhammadu Buhari "is out of the question."
Many electoral monitoring groups are projecting that Buhari, a retired general and the presidential candidate of the APC, is the odds-on favorite to win the March 28 presidential election.
When SaharaReporters reached Atiku, he expressed surprise that we knew about his meeting with President Jonathan. He asserted that the idea of his heading an interim government did not come up during the long discussion with the president.
Atiku said he had retired to bed when he was woken up and told that President Jonathan had come to see him, adding that the president was already waiting in his living room.
After denying that he was asked to head an interim government, the former vice president admitted that Jonathan tried to prevail on him to rejoin the PDP. He disclosed that he rejected the invitation outright.
According to Atiku, the president also discussed the ongoing war against Boko Haram insurgents, asking for support for Nigerian troops fighting in the area. He said they also discussed the possibility of displaced Nigerians returning to the areas that have been recaptured from Boko Haram.
Asked by our reporter whether he thought President Jonathan was interested in allowing elections to hold on March 28, the former vice president hesitated before stating that he would not wish to speculate, but he said the president’s body language did not reveal that he was interested in the elections that are scheduled to hold in two weeks.
In his telephone interview with Sahara Reporters, Atiku disclosed that he is opposed to the formation of an interim government. He stated that when former military dictator, Ibrahim Babangida, set up an interim national government in 1993, the dictator offered him a position in the government through the late General Shehu Yar’Adua. He said he rejected the position, adding that it was eventually given to a Lagos politician Dapo Sarumi.
Asked further about the substance of his conversation with Jonathan, Atiku said advised the president to ensure that the elections are free and fair and devoid of the bloodshed that trailed the 2011 elections.
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