You Can’t Blame Me for Your Failures, Jonathan Tells Buhari

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said his administration has nothing to do with the failures of the Buhari led government, and has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to look elsewhere for who to blame.

The former president was reacting to a statement by the senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, Garba Shehu, blaming him for the failure of Mr Buhari to appoint ministers in the first six months of assuming power.

The president, who was sworn in on May 29, 2015, did not appoint members of his cabinet until six months after he began his administration, which was criticised by many.

Speaking on Channel TV’s Sunrise Daily on Monday, Mr Shehu claimed the delay was caused by the failure of Mr Jonathan to cooperate with the transition committee.

“It took him time to form a cabinet because the outgoing administration in 2015 did not cooperate with the transition committee,” Mr Shehu was quoted by The Cable as saying.

“The President was given handover notes 48 hours to the handover of power and for whatever reason, the President at that time determined that…the question that president Buhari was asking, for details of this and that, amounting to running a second government in office.

“And he came out to all his ministers and permanent secretaries not to cooperate with Muhammadu Buhari that this country will not have two governments running at the same.

“What this means is that President Muhammadu Buhari had wait to come into office and learn about all the inner things that they had done so that he can build on the processes. The government he inherited was horribly disjointed, it was broken.”

However, Mr Jonathan, in a statement by his spokesperson, Ikechukwu Eze, said it is strange that the president is still looking for who to blame, three years after.

“One thing is as clear as daylight: The Jonathan administration has absolutely nothing to do with the failure of this government to appoint ministers early enough to inspire confidence in investors, because it is obvious that handover notes from a predecessor does not contain the list of ministers for the incoming administration.”

Mr Eze said Mr Jonathan handed over the necessary document(s), which Mr Buhari received, ahead of his inauguration.

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