Apart from contesting the presidential election, Odom said it is in line with the presidential system of government that President Jonathan should have the right of first refusal to contest.
Speaking with newsmen in Abuja, Odom who was a Minister of state during the administration of late President Umaru Yar’Adua said, “Let me state clearly that under our constitution, the president has every right to seek a second term in office. And in accordance with the convention of the presidential system of government which we practice, he remains his party’s flag-bearer without going through a primary.
“In fact, the convention is usually a mere formality as was witnessed in the Democratic convention in the United States last year. It is only the candidate of the opposition party that emerges through their primary. There have been talks of an understanding that he would only do one term. However, if such a discussion ever took place, it constitutes a clear violation of our constitution”, Odom said.
According to the former minister, those that were involved in such negotiation for one term for President Jonathan, simply engaged in acts of illegality, saying, “Those that pa engaged in such talks (if ever) are clearly trying to engage in illegal activity. This is because any agreement that tends to override the express provisions of the constitution is not only unenforceable but a clear undermining of the constitution. Such talks should not be heard amongst people who swore to uphold the constitution”.
Accordingly, the former minister said, “It is only a sitting President that has power to decline to seek a second term. He must exercise that right freely and without coercion otherwise it becomes a subtle coup attempt to force the President out of office. The constitution is our grundnorm and if any group of individuals wish to change any part of it; they must engage their representatives in the National Assembly to push for the amendment of the section or sections. They cannot create another document to compete with the constitution”.
On the planned coalescing of opposition political parties to form the All Progressive Congress (APC), Odom said, “I do not think this will work and I will be surprised if I am wrong. You see, you cannot bring a Christian and a pagan to form a church. It will not work, one end of “the church” will be an altar and the other end will be a shrine. And the worshippers will end up fighting each other.
“Alliances are created along ideological lines. This merger is being cobbled together by ideological opposites with the sole aim of grabbing power. It is not an effort at creating a new ideological platform, an alternative to the current arrangement. It holds no attraction to a new voter looking for a brighter future for Nigeria or an alternative to the PDP. First of all, each of the merging party has their private agendas and led by people with deep interests in the status quo”.
However, Odom said that the good news is that the attempt to create an opposition platform will help force the PDP to put its house in order, saying, “ It is evident that there is no opposition today except the one created by the PDP within its ranks. It is a testimony to its democratic credentials that PDP accommodates internal dissension; It is doing its own internal fumigation. I think time will tell but what I see currently is mere posturing”
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