 All right, welcome back. It's still the breakfast on PLOS TV, Africa. And we're still looking at the electoral act, political interest, and all of that with the president issuing a directive. Some people have described it as a sledgehammer. Let me just give you a bit of a background. President Mohamed Buhari has directed all ministers, second, elective public office, to resign before May 16. Now, this was disclosed by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lime Mohamed, at the end of Wednesday's Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by the president. Now, the special assistant to the president on digital and new media, to Lohgunglesi, also stated this in his Twitter post. Now, some of the president's ministers who have indicated an interest in elective positions are transportation, Minister Rotimia Meche, who seeks to be president, Abubaka Malamedia Tony General, who seeks to be KB governor, Labor Minister Kreese, who seeks to be president, but has yet to purchase his form, and Minister of State for Health, the Minister of State for Education, rather, Dr. Meche Mwajubah, who also seeks to be president. Now, Buhari's directive was made known on the day the Court of Appeal conditionally validated a section of electoral law that mandates political office holders like ministers to resign before they can contest for elections or vote in party primaries. We have Katch on Anoju, political affairs analyst joining us on this conversation. Good morning to you, Katch. Anoju, thanks for joining us this time around. Thank you for having me. Yes, it was a big one yesterday and it has actually generated a whole lot of reactions across various forum, various platforms, with some people saying that it is a good one. CSOs have commended the president, but others are thinking that the president seems to be very reactionary rather than being proactive. How do you reason? Well, I will say he was, yes, you're right, reacting to the Court of Appeal which said that the judgment procured by Malami in a court to do my hair, that that was wrong. So, since the National Assembly as an institution have gone to appeal against such alteration of their bill without their consent, the president simply followed what the court said because, don't forget, the advice he got from certain lawyers was that that law has not yet become effective and since it's not effective, you notice since the past fortnight, the bureaucracy itself was sending up key advices telling civil servants that even if that case is in court, that the Standing Rule still says civil servants who intend to partake in politics most resigned within a given period. So, while that was being advised, the court now came in an appeal dismissing and setting aside the OMA hair position that section 84 be expunged. So, the president simply followed that culturally yesterday and advised the ministers to follow suit on what ministers like Emeka Wajibah, who did provide this resignation on the day he picked up the form that what he did. So, it is now official and you're probably going to see a lot of the chokers may not now resign. There are a lot of people who will not resign. You saw that the central bank governor was in court litigating that he doesn't want to resign, he wants to keep his position yet and as we're talking about it, the big man at the meet also went to buy a form. So, there is a tool to break down a order in this administration in regards to the presidential elections. You could see that they brought form for several people. There were several denials and I believe we should just give it some time before these things will settle and we will probably get to know where we are going to because there's a lot of wrong signals coming in. So, it was good that he interjected himself and then brought that intervention which now puts every minister out of official notice that by Monday everybody who intends to run for election and you are now one team of the Buhari administration, whether you're minister or a central bank governor, if you're running for that office, you must resign. That is the significance of the president's intervention yesterday. Dr. Kaj, let's also look at this now. Do we need the president to emphasize this? The electoral act is very explicit. That part of it, section 84, subsection 12 is very clear about it. Do we need the president to make this statement for these political appointees to begin to act? What does it tell of the people? No. We do not need the president to provide this guidance. The law should naturally take his course but of course we've seen a lot of things also misinterpreted by certain people in government and if this also has come into that same misinterpretation, let's simply tell say it is one of the several infringements that we have seen so far with this administration. So that yesterday has given his instructions and I believe you will from today till next tomorrow find out those who are genuinely intended on running, apart from the Shirei Bursin, where every Tom Dick and Harry are now buying presidential forms. All right, so far from what we know some have resigned. God's will at Babio has resigned as the minister of Niger Dental Affairs. The president's personal assistant on new media and digital communications, Bashir Ahmad has also resigned and Mekang Wajjou by minister of state for education has resigned. But then Oman Nayon, minister of science and technology has resigned as well but there are some a bit of differentials as it is right now. The minister of labor and employment says that he needs to get clarification from the president before he actually does that he's yet to resign and of course not just him, other people as well. But I really need to understand what all of this imply for the president. Would he need to now appoint new ministers, new members of his cabinet just before the elections? That seems inevitable. He would need to reject his cabinet and allow politically supposed and election-interested people to go their way. And you also will not say as you were recounting I confirmed this morning because there were some back and front about minister Babio. But this morning I was on phone and he said yes he's resigned and I said fine. So that of Mr. Ngige, Mr. Ngige said he would be consulting his constituents. The president has spoken. You don't need to go back to the president. So minister Ngige said he would consult his constituents. You are going to hear such words from a lot more people. Now that the APC Biasa yesterday said that Golo Jonathan's name has someone living registered and also with the PDP yesterday decided not to go along with Sunday because the party is foundationally built on Sunday. But for them not to say they wouldn't do so. Of course that simply tells you there will be totally brand new permutations and we actually may see those that have been denied become real aspirants in the selection. The surprises are not yet over because if a lot of the aspirants from the east were specifically told by the president to go take the fall, then you should understand the president's mindset in regard of the kind of south that he's looking for. So when he now talks about the east, so you're now seeing even people from even the old east town region but currently in politically dual political zone of south-south and that's what you see in everybody there residing. So I believe we not know where in the south the presidency has been advising people to go get ready about the parameters. If it turns out to be Golo Jonathan and then it means that there will be no contest. There will be no contest. Probably might just be a conversation for another time but let's look at this now with Chris Ngige saying he needs to consult with the president before. Not with the president, he's not the president. He said he wants to consult with his constituents. The presidents have already given the instructions. The constituents here. Dr. Kachin Nunojou has not been explained. I mean it could be anything. A lot has been happening recently but does this not even tell us that we, does this not really portray the ideology of having a strong man or having strong men in the system rather than having a strong system itself because one will be wondering why everyone would have to wait for the president to make a statement about what the electoral law is very explicit about before they take action. It just shows that there's no regard for the rule of law. That is true. That is true. The rule of law has been severely challenged under Mr. Buhari's rule. Don't forget we are talking about election yet the most serious thing that have happened in the past one week are far more heavier than the misinterpretations of the motion of the law in regards to those who want to run for election. We have been removed from the sovereign recommendations list in the margin markets arena by a lot of banks because they've not seen any remittance in the past 90 days from our oil sales and you've also seen the British Home Office right to say that the violence would be seen in the east and not committed by the IPOB. So all this brings a lot of questions to bear and that's why I said going forward we have a lot on our hands. Would you say that all of this is a product of a disregard for the rule of law or obeying instructions? It is a disregard to the rule of law. You do not need the president to tell you to obey the law. The law should stand on its own and every person appointed to work in government should naturally know the law. But because people advise that certain things can be bent for them of course you're seeing this. Even what we're discussing does this look like a primary? No it looks like a joke. All sorts of names. Every kind of persons you know and you start to ask yourself are they already running for this office and you're going to say at the end of the day you're likely to see a repetition of what we saw in the events leading up to the emergence of the party chairmen in the last APC convention. I don't see a primary. I see they withdraw a letter in two charades. I don't think there will be primary. I think the president will simply point to somebody and everybody who submitted their form would withdraw attachment from 18 to 8. We simply be told you swore to this authorized document that you have withdrawn. So we have now considered and this is who we believe we should be endorsed. The reason for a million people buying the form is simple. If at all the 50 people or so that have the form you have up to 80 percent agreeing to the president to endorse somebody. Those people's behavior will not be used as a reference to blackmail some real genuine people that bought the form into also following suit just as they did in the emergence of the party chairman and going on to entail whoever the president wants. So I foresee the protocols being set up for blackmail those who have legitimately step forward to actually contest in the primary. I don't see a primary in any way. All right Dr. Kachan Ononuju let's look at it from another angle. I know some people are saying this might just back some legal debate over the 30-day exploration just before the primaries. That's what the electoral act stipulates and then again there's also the talk of Eterm affecting the chances of these ministers in a late resignation and all of that. What are your thoughts exactly? Well definitely that's why I told you a lot of the ministers may suddenly not resign. From today you will see a lot of those who bought the form will change their mind. I don't I can't tell anybody that what's going on is normal no it's very abnormal it is injurious to an honest context it's undermined the democracy but then it simply goes to show that the system has instead of going forward has actually done one step forward and four steps backward if we now in a party that had his primary in Lagos fully televised suddenly now preparing to undermine institutions and instead seeking to listen to the voice of a strong man that's the truth instead of building institutions now we're building powerful iron bender men. I don't think this is good for the democracy. All right so invariably you're saying that most of these ministers will not resign but those who eventually will resign how do you see their chances really? Yes those who will resign will know those are those from the east where the minister the president seems to be giving all indications and that was why you saw the charades around good long term time now he's giving them his their their their conditions that yes it's not enough for minister Malami to be coming to him to say wrong that they should inform their principal which is the president that once the president is in charge of the discussions with him present good luck then he may listen positively to their begings that he should run and I believe if that happens that's why you see why I told you that a lot of them may not resign why because of the news that now came from Bayasa yesterday that a card had been procured for present good luck from Otoki because the card that was used to originally purchase those funds was arranged by people who according to him made those cards went to buy without doing full consultations which he requested when they came to him that they talked to president that when the person discussing that with him so I do not know what it is that he has not seen for which they have not agreed to yesterday to procure a phone for america for him from otoki and buy us a state and so these things are moving very fast I don't want to look at the denials no I simply look at what is going on it is very clear that the president's eye is focused on the old is down that's why you'll see the people from both the south but how can you how can you be certain doctor on how can you be certain that the president is actually eyeing given the tickets as it is of the apc to the southeast how can you be so certain I am certain I am in here and I know what goes on when you see permutations like present good luck being dragged in you should understand what that means if you see people if you see people like make a wajuba resigning on the day he bought the phone you should know that those things don't just happen and even man would not put a hundred million on a white goose chase is not true there will be some behind the same discussion it was worn for profits and they know what they did talk so once you see a one-on-one make a wajuba buy and then inform for good luck you start looking at that geography this is where it is going to so I am not surprised this is what I predicted years ago and of course if you look at the national crisis what everybody says here in abuja is for us to be able to balance the country in regards to the current agitations from the east just as it happened to the southwest when president was brought out from prison and then used to doubt the european question for due to a republic after the annulment of adela's election after president of mass and you have done eight years vice president to sit back has also done eight years so the calculations is to be able now to balance the entire game is to come to the old east to be able to situate and put off the flame of the current agitation for separatism by the young people and that's what we've seen because a lot of those from the east who are buying the forms are not regular people who were foundationally members of the apc like those from the southwest who linked up with president buerre's cpc to form the foundational platforms of the apc but now as we're having this crisis of insecurity in the country they have been advised across the country that one of the ways to be able to arrest the current agitation for separation from the east is to feel somebody from the east to be able to doubt that tension and that's why you're seeing those movements happening currently in the east so but let's come back to the party level i mean if you have those who are not obeying the instruction of the president that's by the fact that the law is very explicit explicit on it the electoral act section 84 subsection 12 very explicit on that and then the president has also we echoing what the electoral acts has said and for those who would not resign because you've said they're not going to resign what do you think might be the action of the party should the party disqualify them should they be considered the party wouldn't have to disqualify them the party will simply consider them as people who did not submit their forms don't forget you can tell the party you're running but the party will only regard you to be running when you have made their conditions and their conditions is you will submit their form they will not accept your form if you did not tender your letter of resignation this is what the presidential intervention means if you did not resign the party will not collect the the fully completed forms from you they will not do that but anybody you see that's telling you he's submitting his form you can be sure that is somebody who has resigned the party is going through that why they attach form 18 if you also don't feel from 18 for withdrawal the party will not collect your fully filled form and if your fully filled form is not accepted by the party you cannot go to court to say that you are an aspirant who the party knows and the party from there you're just on your own so I don't see anybody being able to even do anything because everything that's happening right now according to the law is in and before you can go outside to a court of law to seek redress the party's rule advices you to seek all the internal mechanisms for crisis resolution before you go out so and I don't see them because a lot of these people are very afraid of somebody I don't really see that challenge I don't but do you see do you see I mean the party acting contrary to this what if I'm just saying well nothing is nothing nothing is impossible but I can tell you we've already seen where the picture is going to and because of the development yesterday in Biasa you can be sure that a lot of people who bought form may not resign okay a lot of them who actually bought will not now progress as aspirants if it becomes real that present good luck will not tell you his conditions have been met you will see a lot of the activities towards contest in the primary all fizzle out this is what is going on right now in our budget all right thank you so much for all of the thoughts that you have shared this morning Dr. Kach and concerning the electoral act to the recent development the president's intervention and of course the fate of the ministers would you appreciate your time thank you for thank you for being part of our show we appreciate you thank you all right we'll take yet another recall comeback was to be looking at politics but from another angle this time around the people's democratic party has actually thrown its presidential party's ticket open no two zoning implications consequences in a moment we'll be talking about that stay with us