Immediate former president, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has tasked Nigerians on setting new standards for democracy in the country. According to him, Nigeria
has to grow the credibility of its democracy to a stage where it would
no longer wait for court judgment to conclude elections.
GEJ, who made the observation at the 6th edition
of African Ambassadors Interactive Forum, AAIF, and dinner, organised by
African Third Sector Resource, ATSR, in Abuja, where he was presented
with the “African Leadership & Achievement Award,” noted that by
conceding defeat before the 2015 election result was declared, he wanted
to set a new standard for the nation’s democracy and prove a point that
election related litigation should no longer define Nigeria’s
democracy.
In his words;
“I always say that I reformed the democratic
process as President in order to consolidate democracy in Nigeria and
the sub-region. I conceded defeat without a fight because I wanted to
set a standard for our democracy, going forward. “My aim then was to
change the narrative and prove that election related litigations should
no longer define Nigeria’s democracy. People must not always go to court
and obtain judgments before elections in Nigeria are declared complete.
We
don’t get to hear about such court cases in mature democracies. I
wanted us to get to that point in our democratic experience. I thought
that it won’t be out of place if we got to that stage where those who
lost elections will be able to congratulate those who won.” Why I
conceded defeat Jonathan said his commitment to the protection of lives
and investments of Nigeria people, their assets and the economy made him
concede defeat and avert looming crises.
The former President,
who was represented on the occasion by the former Minister of National
Planning, Alhaji Abubakar Suleiman, recalled that already, some agencies
in the United States had predicted disintegration, following growing
tensions on the land at the time. He stressed that Nigeria and, indeed,
Africa could have been doomed, if Nigeria was allowed to slide into
anarchy. He said: “Above all, what that decision did for me and the
nation was to avert a looming crisis.
Given the tension in the
land at that time, I was deeply contemplative of what would have
happened if we had let our nation, the biggest black nation on earth,
slide into anarchy, because of contestations for power. What then would
have happened to our citizens, Nigeria’s economy and the investments
driving its growth? “I was convinced that the implication for peace and
the economy of the sub-region and the rest of the continent, couldn’t
have spelled anything else but doom.
Recall that after the 2011
Presidential election, which most observers adjudged transparent, with
my victory generally seen to have been well deserved, crisis and
conflicts still surfaced that claimed the lives of many of our
compatriots, and property worth billions of naira destroyed. “I am
always saddened each time I remember that among those who died
needlessly then were 10 youths undergoing the compulsory one-year
national service, who unfortunately got killed in a state where I
secured only 16 percent of votes.
Tension over disintegration
“Before the 2015 elections, there was palpable tension in the land, to
the extent that some international agencies, especially in the United
States, were predicting the disintegration of the country in the
election year. “As the President, I always had at the back of my mind
that it was my responsibility to protect the assets of Nigerians and
non-Nigerians operating in our economy.
These were committed
investors who had trusted our government with their investments, to be
able to provide jobs and improve the lives of our people. “The steps I
took while in office and during and after the 2015 elections were meant
to secure our country, consolidate our democracy and protect those
investments. I thank God that I was able to do what I did despite the
irresistible force of power, and the usual worries about the uncertain
fate that might befall a leader upon leaving office, especially in
Africa.
Earlier, Executive Director of ATSR, Mr Chijioke James,
said the organisation has facilitated the forum to celebrate the fact
Nigeria was able the get the narrative right during 2015 elections.
Source: Vanguard
2015 Election: Why I Conceded Defeat Without A Fight – Former President, Goodluck Jonathan
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Friday, October 27, 2017
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