‘President’s military background is affecting his performance,’ Balarabe says

The former governor made the comments during an interview with Punch on Thursday, June 16, 2016.

Excerpts below:

Buhari has not demonstrated that he is serious about using dialogue to resolve the various ethnic tension. This government does not care about dialogue. The President’s military background and approach are affecting his performance.

Former President Musa Yar’Adua understood the importance of dialogue which enabled him to put a halt to militancy in the Niger Delta. But what do we have now? Tension and agitation in different parts of the country.

Dialogue is the only way to resolve the Biafra agitation in the South-East, the Niger Delta Avengers and the Boko Haram violence. The APC does not deserve a second term. The PDP is not also a better option. We need another credible alternative

Buhari created enemies for his government when he excluded the South-East from his kitchen cabinet. The kitchen cabinet is the closest to the President. The cabinet is even more superior to the main cabinet which comprises the ministers. The exclusion of the South-East from his cabinet gave rise to the agitation for Biafra.

The solution is the return to a state-economy rather than a privatised economy which is not helping the country. There is unemployment, poor power supply, tension across the geopolitical zones and poverty.

The country needs a better alternative that would restore peace, ensure the rule of law and revive the economy. The APC and the PDP lack the capacity to achieve this.