After his controversial meetings with leaders of the ruling
All Progressives Congress, APC, days before, former Aviation Minister, Femi
Fani- Kayode, on Tuesday evening also met with former President Goodluck
Jonathan.
The former minister met with Jonathan at his Abuja home on
Tuesday evening amidst rumour that he may have concluded plans to dump the
Peoples Democratic Party for APC following his series of meeting with leaders
of the ruling party in the past few days.
Fani-Kayode served former President Olusegun Obasanjo,
Nigeria’s first President after the country return to democracy in 1999 as
Special Assistant on Public Affairs.
Also, the PDP government in 2006 appointed him as the
Minister of Culture and Tourism.
He was later redeployed to the Aviation Ministry as the
minister the same year after a minor cabinet reshuffle.
But he had dumped PDP to join the yet to be registered APC
in 2014.
“I had a meeting with Gov. Kayode Fayemi afterwards and I
have just publicly and formally declared for the APC,” the former minister
said. “For me this is a great and historic day. Goodbye forever PDP,” he said.
But despite his ‘goodbye forever PDP’ assertion, he returned
to PDP just before 2015 general election after he also met with former
President Jonathan.
He said his return to PDP, the he said then, followed his
realization that Jonathan was a responsible leader.
PDP rewarded him with appointment as the Director of Media
and Publicity of 2015 Jonathan/Sambo Presidential Campaign organization.
With Jonathan failing to get re-elected as President,
Fani-Kayode has emerged as a trenchant critic of President Muhammadu Buhari,
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the APC government since 2015
Despite his history of ‘political instability’ Nigerians
were nevertheless surprised when he met with Chairman, Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary
Convention Planning Committee Gov. Mai Mala Buni and Kogi State Governor Yahaya
Bello at a Guest House in Abuja on Sunday.
The closed-door meeting, which lasted for about an hour, was
brokered by Bello, who is also chairman of the party’s Mobilisation and
Sensitisation Committee for ongoing membership registration and revalidation
exercise.
Fani-Kayode had a day before met with Bello in his Wuse Zone
6 residence in Abuja before he led the former Minister to the party Chairman’s
Guest House.
He had also met with the APC Senator representing Kogi West in
the Senate, Smart Adeyemi, a day before.
The former minister’s mostly anti Buhari/APC supporters and
fans had criticized him over his meeting with officials of the ruling party.
Some top members of APC had also expressed their
reservations about the prospect of Fani-Kayode’s return to their party.
Defending his meeting with the APC leaders, the former
minister had in a statement posted on his Facebook page said it was about, “state
of the nation, pressing national issues, party politics and the way forward. He
also criticized those condemning the meeting.
“Despite the obvious benefits and wisdom in this noble
initiative it amazes me that some people should feel that it is wrong for me to
sit with other leaders in the country to discuss issues which touch and concern
the national cohesion, future and stability of our country,”Kayode said.
“I can and will never compromise or jettison my core
fundamental principles for any reason and I stand firmly on my honestly held
opinion that we need to enthrone equity, justice and fairness in this country
for it to survive. I also believe in restructuring the country and in a
vigorous and effective fight against terrorism. The fact that I am in talks
with leaders from a cross-section of political parties, including the ruling
party, does not in any way derogate from this and does not mean that I will
ever change those views,” he added.
But Fani Kayode failed to deny or confirm speculations that he was on his way to APC in the statement.
Also while announcing his meeting with the former President
Jonathan on Tuesday evening, the former minister refused to say if he is
returning to APC or staying put in PDP.
He, however, described the former as best Nigerian president
ever: “My team and I had the honor and privilege of spending a wonderful
evening with President Goodluck Jonathan in his Abuja home earlier tonight.
None like him.”
Earlier, he had warned about attributing quotations not
taken from his social media pages to him. “I would advise Nigerians to be very
wary about fake quotations that are being attributed to me concerning other
political leaders in the country. If you did not read it on my verified twitter
handle or my verified Facebook page then I NEVER said it. Period.”
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