Lagos — Former Chairman of the Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN) during late General Sani Abacha's aborted transition programme, Alhaji Saleh Hassan, in an interview with Chuks Okocha comments on the controversies surrounding the recent medical trip of President Umaru Yar'Adua to Saudi Arabia. He also speaks on other vital issues

What is your view on the controversy over president Yar'Adua's ill-health and the call by some people that he should resign from office?

We have found ourselves in an unfortunate position. The president is sick, his health has not been very good but so far he has managed to steer the country's affairs. The president's status, if you are in a hurry, you will think that Yar'Adua is a non-performer. If you are not in a hurry and very careful, you will see that he has got targets where to punch. He has been punching quite a number of places. He too has been unfortunate because he had inherited so many problems from Obasanjo. Accumulative wrongs of Obasanjo fell a directly into Yar'Adua's lap. When Obasanjo was ruling, there was a conspiracy of silence particularly from the South. All the press kept silence on his weaknesses. When Yar'Adua came, the things came glaring and the unfortunate thing is to be the president of Nigeria at that time with those magnifying problems which will not be easy for a man to carry. Nonetheless, he has been elected the president, so he has to carry whatever it is, he has no excuse to say this was done by Obasanjo, or this is being done in my regime. They were all PDP members for that matter. These problems keep on coming up like a re-occurring decimal and so whoever is in charge must carry the responsibility.

But, under the present circumstance, do you think the president has the strength to carry out the responsibilities of his office?

Only People, who have biases and prejudices will start telling you, Yar'Adua has no strength of carrying out his responsibilities as president. If the man says I can carry it, allow him. This is what has happened; right now nobody can say that Yar'Adua cannot carry out his responsibilities. He has Ministers, advisers; he has other staffs who will help him carry out the responsibilities of his office.

These people have not been found wanting at any time, the executive council which is supposed to say that Yar'Adua cannot carry out his duties successfully due to illness, as required by section 144 of the constitution. Section 144 is talking of permanent disability which means he is almost dead. In other countries, I have seen a president going to work in a wheelchair, on crutches, I have seen a president going to work with a walking stick,. In these instances, nobody is saying go away, you cannot carry out your duties. What is happening in Nigeria now has to do with the imagination of some people who are in a hurry to take over power. They employ so many tactics to realize their inordinate ambition.

When President Ronald Reagan of United States was shot, immediately George Bush, the Vice President was sworn in as the acting President until Ronald Reagan recuperated from his illness. Why wouldn't the Vice President be sworn in as the acting president, pending when President Yar'Adua will be fit to rule.

Yar'Adua was not shot, nobody shot Yar'Adua. He went on his feet to the hospital. He said he was sick. There is no provision in the constitution which says if he is sick then you swear in the Vice President. He remains the President on his sick bed. He will instruct his aides on what to do.

Looking at the present situation of things, some people have said that rotation of power is between North and South. What is the political implication of this?

It was an honourable thing that transpired between the North and the South. The North said alright, we have the population; we can always make a president but this time around, we agreed, let us shift power. So, we shifted power and gave it to Obasanjo on agreement,. This written agreement was that Obasanjo will rule for 8 years and the North will rule for 8 years. So, why do you want to take our own slot now, simply because the president is sick

So Nothing will happen. We Northerners want Yar'Adua, whether he is on a wheelchair, as long as his brain is sharp, his eyes are sharp, his hands are strong enough to append signature, we want him there, let him stay for 8 years whatever, he can be there. We want him there

Let us talk about Nigeria .What in all sincerity will you say have been the achievements of Yar'Adua's administration so far?

You know me very well. I am not a coward . I will tell you. I have been silenced all these years; I did not want to say anything until this controversial matter came up. Assessment of Yar'Adua's regime is left for the Nigerians to make. I have no ambition of going for election; so, I don't want to comment on that. I leave it for the people. When they come next year to campaign, they will tell the world what the government has achieved. But nevertheless, the call on Ya'Adua to resign is irresponsible. That call is irresponsible because they know that it shouldn't be like that. These people who are calling for his head are people who have stakes some where, they are people who have failed is some ways. So, why should they bring down the president, whom we have all elected? Look at the country; they should know that there is an arrangement.

The people are only saying that if something happens to Yar'Adua, the Vice President should become the acting president, what implication does it have on the North-South power equation?

Number one, it is too premature for anybody to start talking of Goodluck taking over. He can only take over when Yar'Adua dies. He is still living, he is still breathing. The constitution does not say that he can take over simply because Yar'Adua is sick. In section 144, it is two third of the federal executive council members, two third of them are supposed to declare Yar'Adua unhealthy and unable to continue with his job. Even the section 144 says that after they have ascertained that he is permanently incapacitated, four doctors plus his own personal physician will come and declare him sick and unable to perform his duties. So, for anybody to start staying he should resign now, is premature.

But how long is he expected to be on the sick bed

He can be on the sick bed from now till 2011. Only God knows how long he will be on the sick bed. Let us pray to Yar'Adua. By God's grace Yar'Adua will come back to Nigeria this week and for those people who say he should resign, I believe they will bury their heads in shame. So, they should not be in a hurry, they should not even come to the edge of saying something bad. I even heard some pastors saying nothing should happen to Jonathan. Nothing is going to happen to Jonathan.