 The All Progressive Congress APC has offered former President Goodlock Jonathan a chance to run for office on its platform should he defect to the party. It's said the former president will be given an opportunity to contest for the 2023 presidency if he joins the ruling party. This was said by the National Secretary of the APC, Ketika and Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, John Akban Udoirige. He said this when he was asked about the speculations that Jonathan is considering to join the ruling party. The APC official also said the ex-president will be granted a founding member status if he joins. He however added that the opportunity will be given to former president Goodlock Jonathan. It would not be automatic noting that he would have to compete with other members of the party before getting the ticket. Joining us to discuss this is Francis Chilaca. He is a political analyst and of course still staying with us in the studio is Baba Shalaat Adiwi. Gentlemen thank you very much. Thank you for staying with us. Thank you Francis for joining us. Yeah so I'm going to start with you Francis. We've heard feelers and these are unconfirmed reports and by the way I'd like to just put it there that the spokesperson of former president Goodlock Jonathan has come out to say that the president hasn't moved to any party and if he does that they would it would be communicated properly. But then this we've seen many people moving to the APC. As we speak Femi Fani Khayyadi has just joined the APC. After he had said I mean I still remember that particular one where he said he would never he would rather die that joined the APC but he's alive he's in the APC I'd like to let you know. And as we speak there are I think a senator if I'm not mistaken or a member of the National Assembly in River State has recently dumped the PDP as that today and joined the APC and the list is endless. We've seen so many cross-captaining from the PDP to the APC. What's with this story of Mr. President or former President Jonathan joining the APC. What change would he make I mean it's not that the APC has a different ideology compared to that of the PDP is it. I think the whole thing is that suddenly we were faced in a country where we no longer have men and women of proven integrity. Everybody is thinking of what they want to eat and what they want to drink. So I think that's where the whole problem lies. It will be shameful and sad if former President Jonathan decides to join the APC out. I won't be surprised so to say but it will be very very sad and shameful of him to do that. Because if we go back and try to read through all the comments all the abuses heard and seen by members of APC that are now asking them to come and join them. You ask yourself are politicians suffering from dementia or something? Is that something that we're not aware of as people that the politicians are aware of? You know because it's for me it is completely laughable it is completely unacceptable and does not hold water in a supply society that we all belong to. I'm confused as to why you're sad or why you're saying it will be sad or why you're saying that it would be very embarrassing. The members of the APC most of them were members of the PDP so again what is the fuss if former President of this country who used to be in the People's Democratic Party decides to join the APC being that the APC seems to be I mean all the political parties are facing they're having their first share of you know internal party crisis but for the PDP seems to be most obvious because the headship or the leadership of the party seems to you know be shaking and so we see a lot more people. We saw members of the ruling council in the party move to the APC why the fuss if President good former President Goodlock Jonathan goes to the APC will it help the APC to win elections in 2023 will it change you know the hopes of the people of Nigeria what exactly is it is it just because he is a former president and he was in on the opposite side when the APC you know was trying to get power why are we so sad or feel disappointed if this even happens. Is anything new that you think Goodlock will bring to the Nigerian society because I mean his government was demonized by the same cacos of APC that are not asking him to come back so I don't understand why are we so fixated about APC everybody's jumping into APC as if we're drowning in one participate see it's not about the party it's it's more about the selfish interest of individuals people without ideology and that is what's playing out you know people are not with those we call political leaders or politicians so to say are not particular about the well-being of Nigeria they're not thinking about the welfare of the ordinary Nigeria it's about what they will get how much of the national cake they would get for themselves and their cronies so whenever anybody jumps party I just laugh because all he means is that they have no integrity they have no ideology they have no self-worth so it's all about how much am I going to make out of the system how much am I going to milk out of the Nigerian people and it is high time that the Nigerian people will wake up from their sleep and realize that these politicians have nothing good for them we must begin to think out of the box and begin to think of voting people not based on party affiliations but based on individuals what they're bringing to the table and what they have been able to do for the Nigerian people. Bawashala just ticking up from where he stopped good governance should be the core of our conversations this should be the front burner issue and the country is faced like I said with a riddle with a lot of issues that need to be addressed but then our headlines and the major headlines on our national dailies is about who's moving to this party and who's I mean and we're here on this show unfortunately speculating if a former president is going to move from party A to party B and not it's not that it's a republican party and and and let's say a labor party it's the same group of people just changing party logos are we also not the creators of the problems that we're facing in the country if we are letting these same politicians set the agenda well every politician has every right to move to any political party the desire but however it shows the lack of ideology individual has and not political party so far so good I have no issue with MBC as a political party I have no issue with PDP as a political party the issue I have with the two of them is just the people in those political parties because the people those political parties has a different ideology totally different from that of political party and which has in one way or the other overriding what the political party has as an ideology or objectives or goal so if we are to go by the objectives of these political parties we will discover that a lot of things would have changed in this country for better but the people in those political parties are actually using their own personal interest they are actually using their own personal interest to kill the interests of the political party now if anybody leaves a to be in this country as of today it has a matter of self-interest what he or she is going to benefit from that party is moving to for Jonathan he's not there yet it has not been confirmed that is in PDP but the truth is I will not be surprised I will not be disappointed if he moves because that is the way that is the that's the way we have seen our leaders leading our country they believe that as long as you are still existing you still need to be inflation you still need to have benefit you still need to have control so they rather move to where they can have industry down for them to be where they will be here at Levant but then we watch these things you and I we're Nigerians we're voting we're part of the voting populace we're here we know these things we're talking now the public is listening but we feel these this happenings we feel these movements there are people who are diehard followers of the former presidents there's people who are diehard followers of all of these politicians and so we seem to be aiding and abating these movements and we applaud them but then the major issues that we need to be addressed are never addressed so I rephrase my question again are we not part of the problem well we are part of the problem and the reasons what the reasons why we are part of the problem is number one we go we vote by the person we both we vote for the person most especially those who have who are popularity uh who are popularity those who have money to spend and those who who sell to hoes dummy uh uh manifestos we are not interested in those who have the experience on how to turn wealth we are not interested in those who have that ideology that can make things better we are not interested in those who can who can who can do things in the way we actually want we are only interested in those who has who have the money to spend and that is why we are where we are today you just you just touched on something I was I was listening to Professor Mulumba if I'm not he I think he's a Kenyan activist and lawyer and I listened to a voice note of his he was saying that the average African is no longer interested in you waxing you know lyrical when you're trying to tell them what you want to change and what you want to do they listen to you very carefully and then at the end of the day they say well we've heard you but we're hungry so all these English are speaking if you do not give us money it it makes no sense so uh our fancies how do we change this narrative because like I said our newspapers the stories that are feeling uh our news bars are basically those stories that are made by politicians and so the interest of the average Nigerian is lost in all of this conversation and we're supposed to be the one setting the tone for the conversation it should be the government of the people by the people for the people but then it seems to be the other way around the government of the politicians by the politicians for the politicians so how do we change that narrative how do we stop the hunger politics and begin to um push for a government that is people minded and people oriented well let me let me start by saying that what is playing out in Nigeria is not poverty of the mind and not poverty of the stomach as people want us to believe unfortunately those who call themselves politicians Nigeria is a country where the politicians have become professional it has become a professional job to be a politician and because of that they throw in everything into it and as usual they have programs that do not uplift the people so the people are improvised the people are hungry and then during the election period what do they do they bring up little of what they have stolen from the people and give back to the people as you know that what is it the thing is we need to have proper voters education this is the time I let the national judicial agency the minister of information all the CSOs around should stop educating the Nigerian people especially the people in the rural areas apart from INEC sorry Francis apart from INEC these are the government agencies you're calling they don't come alive until when it's almost the eve of you know elections so that's what I'm saying so how are they supposed to rise up if they do not have the wherewithal if they're not given the mandate if they're not given the monies and the NOA cannot function inside their office to do some form of orientation they need to be given some monies to be able to do that and we don't see that happening are you saying that they're not being given money well I mean those who work in these establishments we see salary to this establishment okay let me put it to you what was the last time you turned on TV or your television or listened to the radio and you heard an advert editorial or or let's say an announcement by the NOA in the past few aside from the 2015 and the 2019 elections what was the last time you heard so we're coming to this I'm saying the same thing with you but the point is that we seem to have a system that is operating under one man the system runs under the executive we have the judiciary that one on their own their own problem is there we have the legislators that don't even know what they are doing they don't know what they're doing these are things that the legislators should be able to do but they themselves too they all carry the way by the largesse of the office they hold we need to make governance uninteresting we need to make reduce the salaries of those in government when you do that you will find that a lot of people will not be there today this is this is this sounds really great i'm calling who is supposed to reduce who's supposed to reduce the salaries of these politicians is the same politicians is the national assembly who's going to who's saddled with that responsibility so so see when we keep saying we could you know pushing the buck away from the reality the reality on ground is that we need as a matter of urgency to have a working electoral process we need it urgently the use of this country need to begin to realize how it belongs to them and it is time they will take the power from those who are holding them hostage how do they take this power our political leaders are holding this country on stake for personal and grid against and we need to stop people need to stop voting people just because of what they give to them people need to stop voting people who are ready to work who are ready to deliver to them until we face this reality as a people this country will never move forward okay well Francis Chilaca is a political analyst and so is Baba Shaladig we thank you very much gentlemen for being part of the conversation we're really hoping that something will change well thank you all for being part of this conversation and even those of you who've been watching we will be back tomorrow with a fresh conversation on plus politics i am Mary Anna Cohn do have a good evening