2019: Patience Jonathan won’t need lawyers to keep dollars if PDP wins – Garba Shehu

Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, has said wife of former president, Mrs Patience Jonathan may not need the services of lawyers to keep her dollars should the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) reclaim power after the 2019 general elections.

In an article he titled ‘The Real Price of Changing the Change (1)’, Shehu said Nigerians needed to understand the implication of voting out President Muhammadu Buhari.

He stated that members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have only been calling for changing the change “without defining what exactly that means”.

According to him, “the real meaning and cost of the “Changing the Change” is a reversal of the victory gained against corruption.

Shehu claimed that Patience Jonathan will be the happiest person if PDP regains power.

“As the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) gears up to celebrate the completion of three years of the Buhari government in the centre on May 29th, Nigerians need to be reminded of what the reversal of the achievements of this administration will amount to,” Shehu said.

“The main reason for the defeat of the PDP in 2015 was corruption. The present administration at the centre led by President Muhammadu Buhari has so far presented a corrupt-free image of itself. It has also succeeded in abolishing grand corruption at the top.

“The list of people who oppose the Buhari government and yearning to ”change the change” include a number of parliamentarians, policemen, customs officials, immigration officials, civil servants now rooting for other political parties, not leaving out those various businesses and platforms owned by these political parties directly or indirectly.

“The beneficiaries won’t like that the security threat is eliminated. Yes, for them, “Changing the Change” is an opportunity for a resumption of business as usual.

“But the happiest of them all will be Mrs. Jonathan, who will get the first priority when the refunds start coming for obvious reasons. The former First Lady would not anymore need lawyers to keep her mountain of gifts, counted in huge millions of dollars, billions of naira, hotels and buildings.”

Shehu further listed the casualties of changing the change to include initiatives like the whistle blower policy, Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS), ease of doing business.

“Changing the Change means that we will go back to the old ways of doing things,” he said.