Jonathan Accuses Obama Of Working For His Defeat In 2015.

Former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has accused Barack
Obama of pushing for his defeat in the 2015 Presidential
election.

Mr Jonathan who lost the election to President Muhammadu Buhari
blasted the then United States President of taking an unusual step
by “prodding the electorate to vote for the opposition” in the
election.

The claim was part of several made by the former Nigerian leader
in his new book, ‘My Transition Hours’, launched in Nigeria’s
capital Abuja on Tuesday.

“On March 23, 2015, President Obama himself took the unusual
step of releasing a video message directly to Nigerians all but
telling them how to vote,” Mr Jonathan wrote.

“In that video, Obama urged Nigerians to open the “next chapter”
by their votes. Those who understood subliminal language deciphered
that he was prodding the electorate to vote for the opposition to
form a new government.”

For Mr Jonathan, the message undermined Nigerians and smacked of
hypocrisy.
“The message was so condescending, it was as if Nigerians did not
know what to do and needed an Obama to direct them,” he said.

The former Nigerian leader added that although Obama, in his
message, said “all Nigerians must be able to cast their votes
without intimidation or fear,” his government was vehemently and
publicly against the postponement of the elections to enable the
military defeat Boko Haram and prevent them from intimidating
voters.

“This was the height of hypocrisy!” Jonathan declared.

Jonathan’s grouse with Obama went beyond the video. He narrated
in the book that the actions of the then U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry, especially his visit to Nigeria after the elections
were rescheduled from February 2015 to March belied a plot to
humiliate him.

This, he explained, was because even though the decision to
postpone the elections was taken by INEC after a meeting of the
Council of State, Kerry refused to accept that it was in the
interest of the country and the electorate.

“In fact, John Kerry did not accept our reasons for the
rescheduling,” he said.
This did not sit well with Mr Jonathan and he stated as much in the
book.

He wrote, “How can the U.S. Secretary of State know what is more
important for Nigeria than Nigeria’s own government?

“How could they have expected us to conduct elections when Boko
Haram controlled part of the North East and was killing and maiming
Nigerians? Not even the assurance of the sanctity of May 29, 2015
handover date could calm them down. In Nigeria, the Constitution is
very clear. No President can extend his tenure by one day.”

Despite the criticism that followed the decision to reschedule
the election, Jonathan insisted that the decision was the right one
and it paid off.

He said, “Anyhow, the six weeks served us well. We received the
military equipment we were expecting within that period and our
Armed Forces commendably dealt a deserving blow on the terrorists
and repossessed all territorial areas of Nigeria previously
occupied by the terrorists. Boko Haram was deflated up to the point
I handed over to my successor on May 29, 2015.

“We conducted the elections peacefully, even if there were
issues raised about its fairness. At least, the nation was relieved
that the election held peacefully and that there was no
post-election violence.”

Read an excerpt from the book about how the elections
were postponed and the pressure that followed below:

“The decision and announcement to postpone the elections were
eventually made by the only body which could do so under the
Constitution. I should talk briefly about the INEC here because of
the insinuations that my administration muscled INEC to make the
pronouncement. Of course, nothing could be farther from the truth
as people came to realise. Yes, the posture of INEC could appear
edgy, but it knew it was not ready and that the election was too
important to mess up.

“The PVC shortage was everywhere. The lopsided collection of PVC
caused an uproar that grew into a national din. The suspected
housing of PVCs in the custody of non-INEC personnel was an issue.
There were also issues with card readers. All of these happening
despite years of preparation and substantial funds made available.
It was all building up to a perfect storm, but those were INEC’s
problems which we were willing to help resolve.

“Even then, the security of our country was our job and the
military advised as they deemed fit. Before the election was
eventually rescheduled by INEC, I summoned all the Service Chiefs,
the NSA, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Director General of
State Security (DG DSS), among others to get further information.
Then I called a meeting of the Council of State and requested the
heads of security services and the INEC chairman to attend. These
were not apolitical, but at least they could rise above politics
and represent the interest of the entire country. At the end of
deliberations, it was agreed that the elections should be postponed
for six weeks in order to create a safer environment for voters and
officials on Election Day.

“Let me add that the Council of State comprises all former
Presidents and Heads of State, all former chief justices of the
federation, and all 36 serving State Governors who are from
different political parties.

“The INEC was then directed to hold meetings with political
parties while the NSA was to brief them on the security angle to
the rescheduling. The vote in favour of the rescheduling was
overwhelming. INEC thereafter announced the rescheduling of the
election to the nation. I must add that beyond security concerns,
one finds it difficult to understand how INEC or the political
parties would want elections held at a time when more than 30% of
the Nigerian electorate where yet to get their PVCs. This would
have disenfranchised a significant portion of the electorate.

“The foreign pressure on the issue of election rescheduling was
intense. They maintained the curious posture of one who had been
deceived before and therefore had every reason to cede no credence
to our position. But there was no reason to have such a
posture.

“The United States and the United Kingdom were especially
agitated. David Cameron, then the U.K. Prime Minister, called to
express his concern about the election rescheduling, just as John
Kerry came from the United States to express further worry. It was
at best unusual and sobering. In fact, John Kerry did not accept
our reasons for the rescheduling.

“It was unbelievable because at the back of our minds we knew
why the agitation was beyond what meets the eye. There were deeper
political interests.

“In attendance at the meeting of the Council of State where the
decision to reschedule the election was taken were almost all the
living former Heads of State of this country. That should have
convinced John Kerry of the good intentions of the government. He
cannot claim to love and defend Nigeria more than all our former
heads of state present at the meeting. I have stated earlier how
Kerry’s visit was designed to humiliate a sitting Nigerian
President and clearly take sides in the country’s election.

“Anyhow, the six weeks served us well. We received the military
equipment we were expecting within that period and our Armed Forces
commendably dealt a deserving blow on the terrorists and
repossessed all territorial areas of Nigeria previously occupied by
the terrorists. Boko Haram was deflated up to the point I handed
over to my successor on May 29, 2015.

“We conducted the elections peacefully, even if there were
issues raised about its fairness. At least, the nation was relieved
that the election held peacefully and that there was no
post-election violence.”

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