Why IBB, Atiku, Ciroma, Gusau did not attend inauguration

President Goodluck Jonathan’s lack of any concrete inclination to achieve genuine reconciliation and move the country forward may have been responsible for the failure of leading members of the Northern Political Leaders Forum (NPLF) to attend the president’s swearing in on Sunday May 29.

A second reason has to do with some “uncomplimentary remarks” being said about leaders of the group particularly, Ibrahim Babangida, Malam Adamu Ciroma, Atiku Abubakar and Gen. Aliyu Gusau, a source close to the NPLF has said.

It would be recalled that the quartet were not present at the Eagle Square where Jonathan’s new government was inaugurated on Sunday despite a formal invitation handed to each of them.

According to the source, “initially they had individually decided to attend but when they met and compared notes, they decided not to attend for two reasons:

“Despite all Jonathan had been saying about unity, he had not shown any concrete inclination to achieve genuine reconciliation. He has been so inconsistent that he cannot be trusted.”

“Reports emanating from Jonathan’s camp, and they are from reliable sources, said uncomplimentary remarks being said about the four of them and the NPLF discouraged them from attending.”

On Friday, Babangida confirmed to Daily Trust that he had been officially invited but he would be attending the inauguration of the new government in his home state, Niger.

“Yes, I was invited to attend all the events, I would say, but I am attending the ceremony in Minna, my home state and it is happening in my hometown. So I am backing my state government. And it’s not new, may be to some of you or some media outside there, it’s new. But if you recall I did the first one here in Niger State. It’s a state that has been so fortunate; therefore I prefer to do it here while Abdulsalami Abubakar will do it in Abuja. And that is democracy, freedom of choice,” he said.

When asked whether that will not have bearing on state events that he might be invited to attend by the President in the future, he said: “No, it just happens that there are two events (at the same time) both at the national level and at the state level and both are important and I chose to look at it from the immediate level, the Niger State level.”