It’s the second quarter of 2018! A holiday weekend is an occasion for relaxation and brief refreshment before hitting another work week and the beginning of a new month.

However, Lagosians did not exactly get the weekend off to a relaxing start, thanks to the tedious traffic due to President Buhari’s visit. That may not worry Buhari much, however, given the narrative around the PDP’s past that’s managed to be in the news.

IBRAHIM MANTU

During an interview with Maupe Ogun on Channels TV, the former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives was asked:

“So can I just quickly clarify: did I hear you say that you helped rig elections before now?”

And Mr Mantu stunned Nigerians with this confession:

“Yes, Yes, I did, because I am now confessing the truth. I don’t have to go and change election (results) but when you provide money, you give money to INEC boys that if they see any chance they should favour you, you provide money to the security (personnel). I tell you it’s not necessarily when I am contesting election but when my party sponsors a candidate, I will like that candidate to win election.”

PDP

Mr Mantu’s confession was based on – wait for it – another confession by PDP chairman Uche Secondus on the party’s record of governance:

“I hereby, as the National Chairman, do admit that the PDP made a lot of mistakes; we are humans, not spirits and the ability to admit is key in moving forward. We admit that we have made several mistakes; we have passed through all our challenges and have acquired the experience no other party can boast of. We were sanctioned by Nigerians at the polls in 2015; let me use this opportunity to apologise for our past mistakes. It is the honest thing to do, a legacy to transfer to our children; we cannot continue like that. When we make mistakes, we should come out boldly to the people and apologise”

THE PRESIDENCY

Through Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant on media and publicity, the presidency has responded to the comments made last week by TY Danjuma on Army collusion and the need for self-defense:

“The Presidency is very worried that criminal gangs will feel justified in defying legal governing and democratic institutions, and authority of legitimately elected democratic government if unrestrained pronouncements are made. Silence can be dignified, but sometimes it can be misinterpreted and exploited. It is both shocking and scary to hear the recent comments by a senior citizen calling for Nigerians to defend themselves”

BOLA TINUBU

At the 10^th colloquium in his honour, Tinubu took the podium and poured scorn on what Secondus said:

“Nigerians should not accept PDP’s apologies, they are corrupt, they lied, they falsified, they changed figures. For 16years, they made fake promises, gave us fake figures, and they tell us, ‘Don’t talk about it’. It is like, after catching a thief and he tells you ‘Don’t look at me, go and steal your own.”

LAI MOHAMMED

The Minister of Communications followed Asiwaju’s lead:

“We insist that Nigeria was looted blind under the watch of the PDP, and that the starting point in tendering an apology is for them to return the loot. It’s like a robber admitting to stealing your car and apologizing, but then saying he will keep the car anyway. It doesn’t work that way. The PDP is a hypocrite.”

DINO MELAYE

Senator Melaye’s SOS to foreign embassies has not yielded fruit, and now he is speaking out sabotage:

 “I’m not afraid of anyone. Let the truth be told. “Everybody is sabotaging one another. Something should be done, otherwise, the funeral trumpet may be blown on APC. I am not afraid to tell the truth on anybody, whether on Buhari, Saraki, or even my father. I have to speak against injustice. APC and PDP patronise the same market.”

It seems someone is a low-key member of the Red Card movement

SHEHU SANI

Governor Nasir El-Rufai had his loan request of N350 million turned down by the Senate. No gifts for correctly guessing who championed the refusal:

“If you borrow money that you can pay, you are a Businessman; if you borrow money that you can’t pay, you are a slave.”

TUNDE BAKARE

President Buhari’s one-time running mate has not hidden his displeasure with the present government and may be planning something new to show that:

“Nigerians [should] wake up, shine their eyes and put their own destinies into their hands. They should fight for themselves. There are several ways to do it. Civil unrest is one of them, protest is another. We (Nigerians) can shut this government down. We have the numbers and we will show them that we have done it before and we will do it again.”

GERNOT ROHR

The Super Eagles have begun preparations for Russia 2018, but Coach Rohr was not happy with Alex Iwobi’s performance in the loss to Serbia:

“With us all the time he’s very good, already in Poland and he was fantastic. Perhaps some times (he did) a little too much individually, he wanted to make a show. We prefer collective football.”

GOODLUCK JONATHAN

Going into the second quarter with the Easter holiday, Nigerians could do with a message of hope, even if from a former president whose goodluck did not transform into much:

“Easter is a time when we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, who died for the sin of the world. In this season where we mark renaissance, I believe and expect Nigeria to rise and overcome her national challenges because our shared experiences are bringing us to the conclusion that no matter what the forces of evil can do, we as Nigerians, united in doing good, can and will prevail. I urge all Nigerians, even if we feel that we are not in a position to do much to help Nigeria to overcome, let us at least believe that she will overcome. That is a lot. That is a lot. Happy Easter!”