Former military president General Ibrahim Badamasi Babaginda has disowned statement he purportedly issued asking President Muhammadu Buhari not to contest during the 2019 elections.
In a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists on Sunday in Minna, Babaginda said he has unfettered access to President Buhari and would not have resorted to advising him through the pages of newspapers.
"My attention has been drawned to a press statement on the State of the nation, particularly 2019 general elections and beyond.
"Let me categorically state that as former President and Statesman, I have unfettered channel of communication with the highest authorities without sensational public correspondence, therefore those views expressed over there are personal views of the writer." the former military president noted.
IBB said with due respect to individual opinion and constitutional rights, it was worrisome that Political events and civil unrest in many part of the country, has raised many questions on the governance and unity to the extent that 2018 is inundated with seasons of literatures on the corporate existence of this country.
He said in his message to this year’s Armed Forces Remembrance Day that he specifically expressed the dire need for proactive measures to stop farmers/ herdersclashes in the Middle Belt, cattle rustling, armed robbery, Kidnapping, gangsterism and cultism.
He added that he had through that statement called on security agencies to step up surveillance with more efforts on intelligence gathering for maximum success.
He however noted that recent happenings and utterances by political gladiators is alarming and not in the interest of common man that is already overstretched and apparently living from hand to mouth due to precarious economic conditions. He expressed optimisim that the political actors will play within the ambits of political norms and decorum to ameliorate the problems facing our society now.
"Since after my military years that metamorphosed to the only Military President in the history of Nigeria and my civilian life, I always have one clear objective that freedom can only be achieved through democracy. Some people find this freedom as an avenue for eroding democracy by antics of hate speeches under the guise of religion, tribal or self imposed mentorship.
Thiss trend of pitching political class and the people is unhealthy and skewed."
The former leader observed that the clamour for re-alignment of governance in the country ahead of 2019 election year is a welcome development only if the agitations are genuinely channeled through legislation and total supremacy of the constitution, adding that any attempt outside this circle of democratic tenants is deceptive and divisive idea capable of plunging our political journey into disarray.
He noted that present political parties and their structures need parameter pillars that will make them more strong with unique ideologies but suggested that political parties need surgical operation that will fusion them in to a reasonable numbers.
"I have been an advocate of two party systems but in our present reality in Nigeria, our political parties can fusion into strong political association/party that can form a formidable opposition to a ruling party.," he said.