On saturday 14th February 2015(the day originally fixed for this years
presidential election), I spent sometime to ponder on what President
Goodluck Jonathan really stands to lose if his reelection bid is
unsuccessful and till now(as I write this) nothing has come to my mind.
My inability to find a single thing further strengthened my resolve to
support my president.
This is a man who from being a lecturer has risen through the ranks to
become president within a period of 16 years, a position many have been
struggling to attain since 2003. Perhaps if Jonathan is not
reelected(God forbid), the people of Nigeria who have seen and
understand what structures Jonathan's administration has put in place to
take this nation to greater heights will have much more to lose than
him. For the rest of his life(and even in death) Goodluck Jonathan will
forever be recognized as a former president. He will sit at the council
of states meeting(I know he won't be as selfish as others to attend only
those meetings that will benefit him only). He will get his pension and
other benefits. He will be protected by men of Nigerias security
agencies. The name Jonathan alone will 'unlock' doors of opportunities
not only for members of his immediate family but also extended and maybe
any one else who bears the name(as we have seen in time past).
On the other hand Nigerians who have witnessed a departure from the old
order will be left to face the same cabal consisting of men who in the
far/recent past plunged this nation into anarchy and are the architects
of Nigerias woes.
•Job seeking graduates will be left to face uncertainty with a man who
within 1983-1985 could not create jobs for a population of graduates by
far lesser than what we have now yet is promising heaven and earth
today.
•Millions of youths who are eagerly awaiting an opportunity to benefit
from the YouWin scheme will be disappointed. There is no way a man who
cannot point to one single policy of his(while he ruled) which
encouraged the growth of small/medium scale and even big businesses can
feel comfortable encouraging the youths to be independent. Most of the
youths benefiting from the YouWin scheme today were babies when General
Buhari ruled, having been told they were the leaders of tomorrow then,
it is obvious that to the General their tomorrow isn't here yet; how
then can this same man encourage 'babies' to be financial independent?
•The Almajiri kids who from generation to generation have suffered
deprivation of even the very basic things that makes life comfortable by
the elites who are seeking a return to power - irrespective of the fact
that their region of the country have held on to power for the longest
period since independence, will be utterly disappointed if Jonathan
doesn't get reelected. Through President Jonathan, these kids have seen
the light, going back to darkness is something I do not wish for them.
•The farmers who have thus far benefited from the current agricultural
revolution are in a better position to know how it was prior to
Goodluck's coming and what is obtained now. It is unthinkable that any
farmer who has benefited from the hitch free fertilizer acquisition
process and the e-wallet system will seek a return to the old order. How
about those benefiting from the various dams being constructed
nationwide, these ones I am sure prefer continuity to a dubious change
being canvassed by “yesterdays men”.
•Do we jettison the growth in our economy with the billions of dollars
being invested by local and foreign investors, which have been well
managed by President Jonathan to line behind a man who could not manage a
less complex economy three decades ago and who has a penchant for
canceling projects embarked on by his predecessors?
•The millions who ply the numerous roads constructed or under
construction all across Nigeria will have more to lose. Would it be a
display of wisdom to bring back a person who embarked on selective
distribution of amenities both as Head of State and PTF chairman?
•How about the thousand who use the resurrected railways as a means of
transportation for both business and pleasure all across Nigeria? Non of
them in their right senses will be happy to see the railway return to
the state it was in 1985(with cockroaches,snakes and rats dwelling in
the coaches).
•Millions currently benefiting from the power sector reforms as well as
'operation light up Nigeria' dread a return to the old order when only a
few communities had access to power.
From the above and many more reasons, I believe without an iota of doubt
that President Jonathan remains the best option for Nigeria at this
time and has proven to be the best president Nigeria has ever had. With
regard to development we have never had it this good. It is my sincere
desire that Nigerians will choose continuity and allow this march to
prosperity to be sustained rather than a change spearheaded by a few
greedy persons who have come to imbibe the false believe that calling
the shot at all times is their birthright, and to decide who gets what
and when, is their exclusive preserve.
I do not belong to the group of people who say “let Gods will be done”
as regards this election, because to me this is more than an election.
It is an opportunity for Nigerians to take back their nation from the
grasp of a few persons whose aim is to perpetually keep the majority in
captivity. I belong to the group of persons who know they can “decree a
thing, and it shall be established unto thee[them]” and have the
confidence that “if two[in this case we are much more than two] of you
agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them...”.
OLUSEGUN OBASANJO:
This is a man who has benefited from this country
immensely. Of the 55 years of Nigerias independence, he alone has been
in office for 11 years and shamelessly sought an extension of his tenure
after the constitutional 8 years. Obasanjo represents that terrible
Nigerian nightmare that has just refused to go away. A president who for
8 years had a chance to write his name in gold but instead choose to
waste all of those years without any landmark achievement to his name
now goes around like a “roaring lion seeking whom to devour”.
A man who failed as a father, as a president and continuously fails as
an 'elder statesman' with utterances that are embarrassing to any right
thinking person. Isn't it laughable that a man who sought an infamous
3rd term now compares another to Laurent Gbabgo for no just cause.
Obasanjo is the man who has conducted the worst election in Nigerias
history. Under his watch a sitting governor was kidnapped and nothing
happened. Obasanjo presided over the affairs of this nation at a period
where political killings seemed as the accepted norm, it is interesting
to note that not even one political murder under him was resolved till
he left office in shame. A sitting president who had several corruption
scandals pointing directly to him and his then Vice. A president who
with impunity revoked oil,banking and aviation licenses of political
enemies all in one day for not doing his biding; this is the same man
lecturing President Jonathan and Nigerians by extension on the rule of
law and morality - how pathetic.
It is no surprise that certain people take this man serious, ours is a
tale of a people who don't learn from history and this wickedly
manipulative man who derives joy in permanently controlling people feeds
on the short or total loss of memories of those who still consider such
a figure their hero.
Evil can never triumph over good forever. Obasanjo and his likes will be
overcomed permanently and consigned to the dustbin of history while
Nigeria continues the forward movement it is witnessing under President
Goodluck Jonathan. We triumph still, irrespective of how many the
enemies of progress are.
Enenim Ubon tweets from @enenimubon.
