Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan:The Giant Strides Of An Unforgettable National ICON By Mike Ozekhome, SAN – TheNigerialawyer

INTRODUCTION

Dr Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, GCFR, President, and
Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria (2010-2015), turned 62 on
Wednesday, the 20th of
November, 2019. Jonathan, popularly called GEJ,
was born at Otuoke, Ogbia, Bayelsa State. A former Lecturer at the
University of Port Harcourt, Jonathan holds the B.Sc, M.Sc and Ph.D
degrees in Zoology, Hydrology and Fisheries Biology. He had, before
venturing into politics in 1998, worked as an Education Inspector,
Environmental Protection Officer and Lecturer. He was Deputy
Governor to now late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, and later Governor,
upon the latter’s illegal impeachment on December 9,
2005. As Alamieyeseigha’s Counsel who was physically
present in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state, I can state authoritatively that
he was unconstitutionally impeached with strong hand instigated by
executive recklessness, at a time the Impeachment Panel had neither
secured a hearing venue, nor interviewed him or his counsel, or
given him any hearing at all, let alone a fair one. Indeed, the
panel had not even started when EFCC drove the Law makers (who had
been quarantined off in Abuja), to Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, to
“impeach” Alamieyeseigha, with federal government-
sponsored brute force. Helicopters hovered in the air, with fully
armed soldiers and policemen, using sand sacks and armoured tanks
to block the roads leading to government offices in Yenagoa. Upon
Alamieyeseigha’s removal from office, Jonathan was sworn in as
Governor of Bayelsa State on December 9, 2005. He
later became Vice President to late unforgettable Democrat, Umaru
Musa Yar’Adua. Upon the latter’s ill-health, Jonathan became Acting
president of Nigeria on 9th February, 2010, with a
motion okayed at the Nigerian Senate and anchored on the
“doctrine of necessity”. This is because Yar ‘Adua
was bed-ridden in far away Saudi Arabia. When Yar’Adua
died, Jonathan became Nigeria’s 14th president on May 6,
2010.

GEJ is surely a child of destiny from a very humble and deprived
background. He could not wear shoes at 10. His story is similar to
my grass-to-grace story, as I could not even wear pant (dross) at
10, let alone shoes. So, in that respect, we are two of a kind.
Jonathan emerged from virtually nowhere and taught Africans and
Nigerians the true meaning of democracy, as espoused by ex American
President, Abraham Lincoln, in his 1863 Gettysburg
Declaration, as “government of the people, by the people
and for the people”. Under Jonathan, Nigeria truly enjoyed
unhindered peace, tranquility, prosperity, rule of law, respect for
citizens’ fundamental rights, obedience to court orders; even as he
strengthened, widened and deepened the plenitude and amplitude of
constitutional democracy and transparent governance. The electoral
process was made free, fair, credible and transparent. Nigeria
overtook South Africa as the biggest economy in Africa, rebased
with over $500 billion. Nigeria became one of the fastest growing
economies in the world. President Jonathan was serially and
routinely abused, insulted, denigrated and humiliated, both in his
official capacity and as an individual. He was bespattered with the
ignoble paint brush of odium, shame, derision and obloquy. He
waived it all off with smiles and affability, saying it was the
right of the citizens to critique their leaders and hold them
accountable and responsible to the people, even if it meant using
expletives and outright abuse. Perhaps, his greatest take-away
epochal and historic statement that placed him in the undoubted
pantheon of unforgettable world statesmen, was when he pungently
declared, “any ambition I have at any time is not worth the
blood of Nigerians”. Speaking to a stunned audience of the
All Political Parties Summit in Abuja, Jonathan
preached that no Nigerian should kill or maim himself or herself
because of his presumed 2015 second term ambition. The now
internationally acclaimed democratic icon concluded, “I
would never, ever expect a Nigerian to spill a drop of his blood
because Goodluck Jonathan has some ambitions. Nigerians should
always preach peace and unity in their engagements. This is the
only way the country will achieve greatness”. GEJ meant
every word of it. He lived true to his promise when he voluntarily
conceded defeat in a 2015 fundamentally flawed presidential
election, even before the inflated votes had been completely
counted and announced.

What do we see today? A total and complete reversal of the lofty
legacies left behind by this icon of democracy, in every facet of
life. Every issue of nobility that Jonathan ever stood for has
either been roundly bastardised, or shamelessly consigned to the
vehicle of historical oblivion. Insecurity is worse today than ever
before. Nigeria is not just a hungry country; it has been
officially pronounced as the poverty capital of the world,
overtaking India. Somalia was the most corrupt country. Nigeria is
today the 144 most corrupt Nations out of the 175 surveyed by
Transparency International (TI), according to its 2018 corruption
perception index. Nigeria is the 18^th most corrupt
country in Africa, out of the 20 rated by TI. It is the second most
corrupt Nation in West Africa. Elections have since become festive
celebrations of crimson blood, mayhem, arson and wanton killings.
Polling units have been turned into horrendous theatres of human
bloodbath. Ballot papers have been replaced with bullet magazines.
Citizens’ votes are neither counted, nor allowed to count. Freedom
of speech and right to liberty have become gravely endangered and
imperiled. The hate speech bill currently before the NASS and which
is targeted at the opposition, Rights Activists and social critics,
prescribes the death penalty. It has passed the first reading. It
is reminiscent of the then General Muhammadu Buhari’s
1984 draconian Decree 4, under
which Tunde Thompson and Nduka Irabor of the Guardian newspapers
were jailed for reporting truth, just because a report about
certain diplomatic postings allegedly embarrassed the Buhari
military junta, even though it was true. GEJ sir, as you clock 62
years on earth, Nigerians, nay, Africans, the black world and
humanity in general, celebrate you. They will never forget your
unending contributions and ineradicable prints in the democratic
sand of time. Your name is forever etched in history, inerasably
and luminously. Any historian, however unkind and antagonistic to
your person and persona, even if unwilling to give u a full book,
must at least surely give you a page, or a chapter, or a paragraph,
or a sentence, or a phrase. The important thing is that it is
totally impossible to completely forget or obliterate you, your
noble deeds, political astuteness, statemanly sagacity, strong
democratic credentials, and more importantly, your humanity. In
Nigeria’s history, you remain assured of kind memories. I wish you
a very happy birthday, many happy returns and peace that passeth
all understanding (Phil 4:7).Kindly accept from
me, Genesis 6:3.That is your portion sir.

 THE PLACE OF THE PRESIDENT AND
VICE PRESIDENT UNDER THE NIGERIAN AND AMERICAN
CONSTITUTIONS

(Part 4)

INTRODUCTION

Today, we will further discuss this important topic which we
commenced three weeks ago.

THE VICE PRESIDENT IS NEITHER A SERVANT NOR SLAVE OF THE
PRESIDENT

The Courts in Nigeria, especially the Court of Appeal, have also
done a great job in elevating the office of the Vice President
beyond that of a mere servant or loyalist of the President who can
be removed at the pleasure of the President.

In the case of ATIKU ABUBAKAR V.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL, Fed. (2007) 3NWLR (Pt 1022) 601 at 637
Paras. D – F(CA) the Court reasoned:

“At the stage of nomination for election, the
presidential candidate who nominates his associate or colleague or
companion can drop his running mate at any stage before the
election subject to the relevant provisions of the Electoral Act
for any reason. After the election and they are jointly declared
elected upon one becoming President and the other Vice-President,
the former loses his discretion to remove the latter at will. The
removal of the Vice-President will then become subject to other
provisions of the Constitution, such as section 143 or 144. “The
bond of companionship which compelled them, to remain together
during election loosen and they would swim to certain extent,
separately. The interest tangible or intangible of the
Vice-President vests and could no longer be so easily wished away
by either the President or the political party which sponsored them
for the election. On his election, he ceases to be Vice
Presidential candidate of the sponsoring party and becomes the Vice
President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by the grace of the
electorate and no longer of the President who nominated him as his
running mate and the party which sponsored both of them. These
Vice-Presidential candidates are not always liability, a times they
are assets who bring strength to the ticket. Will this bond of
friendship prevent him from assuming office in the event of
impeachment of the President? Certainly not.” Per. Abdullahi,
PCA. (To be continued).

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is
in life to celebrate”. (Oprah Winfrey).

LAST LINE

Nigerians, I most sincerely thank you all for always keeping
faith with the Sunday Sermon on the Mount of the Nigerian Project,
by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, OFR, FCIArb., Ph.D, LL.D. I enjoin you
to look forward to next week’s treatise. In our never ending
national conversation. Let us all resolve to make Nigeria great and
prosperous.