INTERVIEW: Tinubu Will Come Third Or Fourth In 2027 – Gololo

Haruna Gololo is a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), a prominent voice in Northern Nigeria and one of the leading mobilisers who worked for President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 presidential election. A former supporter of the Tinubu administration, Gololo has since become critical of the President and is now backing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for the 2027 presidential election.

In this interview with THE WHISTLER’s Isuma Mark, Gololo explains why he turned against Tinubu after helping to mobilise support for his election in 2023 boasting that Tinubu does not have support in the North to win the 2027 elections. Excerpts…

You have been openly critical of the Tinubu administration. What specific policies or actions of the government have disappointed you most?

In 2023, when President Bola Tinubu, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, was contesting in the primary, I did not support Tinubu because I knew him in Lagos. I knew what he did to the North at that time in Lagos. So I did not support him in the primary. I supported Osinbajo and voted for him.

But when Tinubu won the primary, late President Buhari called me and said that since I was still in the APC, I should not leave the party and should continue campaigning for Mr Bola Tinubu, which I did. With El-Rufai, all of us continued. In fact, El-Rufai was the person who directly said we must vote for Mr Bola Tinubu.

After we voted for him, all the appointments, especially appointments where money is involved, were given to Yorubas. There was no one from the East or the South who studied accounting where money would be kept. It was only the Southwest.

So I asked myself, why must I follow this type of person who is only tribal? When Obasanjo was there, he did not do it like that. When Jonathan was there, His Excellency did not do it like that. He gave everybody a fair opportunity because we voted for you.

At the end of the day, we don’t have any appointments. While they were giving people ministerial and DG positions, my own DG ended up in Kuje Prison. El-Rufai was nominated a minister and they dropped him. Where is he now? After eight months, ICPC and EFCC are still holding him. Even seeing his family is a problem.

Is this the person who will go back and campaign again in 2027? No, I cannot go there again. I don’t care about anything. I don’t need money, clothes, a car or a house.

What I need is unity in Nigeria and peace. I want to be able to travel anywhere and see light, water and security, and be treated equally. If they can give appointments in the East, they can give appointments in the North and the Southwest. Fine, the South-South is also represented, but you cannot just take one side.

Look at the scandal involving a fake agency, where the agency indicted the Chief of Staff and mentioned his name. Why don’t you conduct a private investigation? Instead, they took it to ICPC.

The ICPC was brought by the Chief of Staff to the President because he is a friend of Faruk. Faruk is a senior brother to Dr Musa of the ICPC. So there is no way you can give me an appointment and I will disappoint you.

Instead of the President investigating him, he carried him and gave him another appointment. One Secretary to the Government had that problem during Buhari’s time. What happened? He was dropped. One finance minister at that time had a problem with NYSC. She resigned. Why doesn’t the Chief of Staff step down and say, “I need a private investigation before I return to my office?” They don’t do it.

Is your anger mainly because you and El-Rufai were not given appointments? If you had been appointed, would you have spoken differently?

No. I don’t even like appointments. All those ministers don’t have anything to show. Go to the ministries; they can never give you anything.

The only ministers where there is money are the Minister of Works and the Minister of FCT. Look at the roads. From here to Kaduna, they have not finished the road. They are giving another contract from Okonga to Gombe to Biu.

Then they say there is another road from Badagry to Sokoto Super Highway. Where is the super money or super highway?

In Abuja, this is the first time water has carried houses everywhere because all the gardens have been taken over by ministers. The areas where water is supposed to flow have been taken.

Now they say demolition will start tomorrow. That demolition will be like, Gololo, if you see my house, you will just pack out and leave. Development Control, before you know it, will carry bulldozers and enter because I criticised him.

Let us be 50-50. Let us be Nigerians. Let us be citizens. Let us be patriotic. There is no way you can block the whole garden as if you are the first minister or will be the last minister.

But he ordered the demolition, saying he never gave those places and green areas to anyone. Do you disagree with that?

How? While he is building there, go to FCDA. When you are going around FCDA, along the road and the centre of the road, they are building shopping malls and petrol stations. Why?

When you are going to ECWA, everywhere is flooded because all the roads he made have no drainage, and they were made by his company. Which company made that road? Julius Berger can never make that road, or Dantata, or any company. Even the Chinese companies cannot make that type of road. They don’t make a drainage system.

I’m not an engineer, but we have known roads for many years. I’m an old man. Wike didn’t become my senior by age.

Do you have evidence?

Yes. Which company did the bidding and won the contract? When you win a contract, they publish it in the newspaper. How many newspapers published that contract? He gave it to his company.

That is a serious corruption allegation. You are accusing the minister of corruption.

Yes, that is what I’m talking about. The same thing applies to the Minister of Works. The contract he gave to Calabar, how many companies applied, and how did they apply? And the one he mentioned, from Sokoto to Zuba, Akwanga to Gombe and Borno, how did they apply?

These people don’t care about anything. They just give contracts to companies suitable to their taste. All the money we are giving for contracts is with them and Chagoury, a Lebanese.

We are here suffering as citizens. Julius Berger is packing its equipment and leaving. The petroleum they are drilling for us in the North, between Gombe and Bauchi, they packed their equipment and left since this government came.

Then you are telling me that in 2027 I should go and campaign for him? No.

The FCT Minister has said the President will win because he has done a lot in the FCT and has won many people over. What is your response?

What about the flood? Can this flood make the minister come back?

When the minister was in Rivers, he ruled them like a monarch. Whatever he said was what you did. How many people did he dethrone? That is what he wants to do in Abuja.

I tell him that Abuja is not Rivers State. We are not your slaves. We are not your sons. We are not afraid of you.

I don’t fear human beings. I can respect you, but I am not afraid of a minister. Age-wise, he is not my senior.

I remain a citizen of Nigeria, and we will remain citizens of Nigeria. Is it not only one vote he has? Can he go and campaign for Tinubu? If they make him DG, there is a state he can never visit. He will never visit that state.

They say because it is not competition, drinking, dancing or singing. What are you talking about? As it pains them, it pleases us. Tinubu is going.

You have repeatedly said in your videos and statements that “Tinubu is going.” What makes you believe he will lose? He has the army, the police, financial resources and thousands of appointments.

My reason is this: Mr President himself told us that if we don’t have light, we should not vote for him. In the Villa, they are using solar power. We don’t have light. So how?

He promised that if we don’t have electricity, we should not vote for him. If our sons will not go to school, we should not vote for him. Are they going to school as usual? No. Is there any light? No. The roads, where are they? None of the roads are complete in the North or anywhere.

From Lokoja to Enugu, is the road complete? From Lokoja to Benin and up to Lagos, is that road done? All the roads they are doing are concentrated in Lagos.

Lagos alone has many transformers, and then they have them in Ibadan. The whole North, we have only a few. Is that how we are going to vote? Is that how we are going to continue?

That is why we don’t have industries, because the electricity we are getting is only about a quarter of what we need. Is that how we will go? We cannot go.

Are other Northerners aware of these things you are saying? It appears that many of them are comfortable with the President’s performance.

Everybody has a different way of doing things. During Shagari’s time, there was NPN and PRP. I was a student then. I supported PRP, while my father supported NPN.

You have the right to support anybody you feel you can support. But for me and the people who are hearing what Gololo is saying, I am not supporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Do you think the North has the numbers to support another candidate and defeat the President?

We have the votes. What are you talking about? We have the votes. It is only if you don’t vote.

If we vote, nobody can rig our election. We will vote and defend our votes. If he likes, let him carry the whole Armed Forces, even Nigeria or Israel. We will not vote for him.

If he likes, he can go back and carry the US. Even though I know he cannot carry the US because he doesn’t usually go to the US.

Do you think the President will be affected by the recent development in the US, where a court has ordered the release of certain records?

There is no way the President of Nigeria, a country in Africa, will be spoken about in relation to prison and drugs. Let them come out and say it is not true, or let the President come out and say, “I have never been involved in this. It is a lie.” Simple.

They did not speak specifically. They said they should release it now. He must have put it in a written reply to the US because it is an insult to a big country like Nigeria, an African country.

Then this thing will happen. Many prisoners who are accused of such things will have the opportunity to talk to Nigerians.

They will tell you, “Your President has been accused of drugs.” And all the time you tell them Nigeria is this and Nigeria is that. Is that how the country is?

No. No President in Nigeria has been accused of this. No President has ever been accused in Nigeria since the creation of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. None.

The challenge is that this issue was there before 2023. You and El-Rufai mobilised across the North for Tinubu. Didn’t you know about the drug allegation?

No. Personally, I didn’t know, and I didn’t even know there was an issue concerning this. What I knew was that Buhari’s time had ended in the North. We wanted to support someone from the Southwest, just to allow someone from the South generally to come in.

That was my ambition because in Nigeria, we are supposed to be united. This side will rule and the other side will also rule. That is why I supported him. Simple.

You are now disappointed. Can you spell out exactly what has disappointed you?

My disappointment, in the first place, is with the appointments. All the appointments he gives are to people from Lagos or Ogun, and mostly not Ondo. In every financial area where there is money, he appoints Yorubas. That is one.

Secondly, all the contracts are given, but they are not on the ground. They are only on paper. There is no implementation of the budgets.

What do you use the money for? The military protested over pension payments. Contractors even carry their food and belongings and stay at the Ministry of Finance because there is no money to pay them.

Most of those who used to boast about billions cannot give you a small amount now. With this situation, can you continue? No. You have to change. Simple.

He is the incumbent. If the election is held and he is declared the winner, what would you do?

No, he can’t. When the election is held, they will count the votes, and the votes will determine who wins the election.

There is no way. Look at Abuja and the FCT. When you see a minister, you think he is something special. I don’t fear ministers.

Wike is only talking. We are not afraid. I fear no human being. He is eating food; I’m eating food. He is riding a motor vehicle; I’m riding a motor vehicle. What is the difference?

Let Wike come and say we will not vote. Let him come and declare. Is he INEC? No.

He had a vote in the last election. I even campaigned with him. But what will he campaign with the masses now? What will he tell them about what has happened?

Developed the FCT when houses have been taken away and there is so much flooding?

Which road has he commissioned? Let him say, “I commissioned this road for you.” The vote will be very difficult for him.

If you don’t want Tinubu, who else do you want?

For now, there are so many candidates. Peter Obi is there. Atiku Abubakar is there. Those are solid candidates. Sowore is there. So many people.

Personally, I’m voting for Atiku. Directly, I’m voting for Atiku and campaigning for Atiku.

Atiku is from the North. You rightly stated that there is a rotational presidency between the North and South. But each time it is the turn of the South, Atiku contests. Do you think it is fair for Atiku to contest when it is the South’s turn?

Yes. My reason is this: If another solid candidate comes out from the Southwest, like Rotimi Amaechi or Donald Duke, I can support him.

If you look at Obi’s policies and what he wants to do in Nigeria, isn’t there enough there for you to say that, since it is the turn of the South, he is the best among the candidates?

No, he is not the best one. His policy is his own policy. He did not mention what I wanted.

Have you considered other Southern candidates?

If Soludo, the present governor of Anambra State, contests, I will vote for him. If it is Hope Uzodimma, I can also consider him. I like somebody who is neutral.

If my brother commits an offence and I cannot say he committed an offence simply because I need him to rule, there is no way. It is not possible.

With Atiku and Obi both contesting, do you think the split among the opposition candidates works in favour of the President?

It can never work in favour of the President because we vote. The people who are voting know where they are going to vote. In the last election, Obi won in Lagos State.

So what? He has control of Lagos, but they won him. The vote must determine who is coming there. Personally, I think the President may come third or fourth.

To be clear, what is the level of mobilisation in the North against President Tinubu?

Mobilisation is going on seriously, and the campaign is going on seriously. But we don’t reveal our strategy.

In a battle, when you are going to battle, you don’t tell the enemy what assault you are going to use, whether it is a brigade attack, battalion attack, company attack, ambush or something else. It is left for you when you go voting. The voting will determine everything.

Baba-Ahmed said that if the election were free and fair, the President would be defeated by 4pm.

He can’t even last until 4pm. It will be earlier.