Why did President Jonathan fail to deliver? By: Adelaja Abdulazeez Akinlolu

Let me say ab initio that I actively supported the election of
President Jonathan into office in 2011. Like many other
Nigerians, my supports were based inter’alia on the following:
(i) A President coming from the ‘minority’ region especially
the Niger Delta which had been ravaged with degrading
environmental and humanitarian crises due to oil explorations
and abject poverty in the presence of abundant wealth
deserves the Presidency. Such a development would go a long
way to assuring all Nigerians irrespective of ‘minority’ or
‘majority’ regional or ethnic background that they can rise up
with determination to any possible level in the nation. (ii) The campaign promises of President Jonathan appeared
convincing if he would go ahead to keep the promises.
(iii) This is a rapidly advancing scientific age and the youths
are in a better position to manage public offices based on
better comprehension of emerging trends. I believe the future
belongs to the youth and the youth should be allowed to take
charge of their future. President Jonathan appeared the
younger acceptable candidate.
(iv) Clearly, performances and achievements of public office
holders have more to do with innate leadership ability,
intelligence, charisma, visionary ideology, self-discipline,
firmness and sincerity of purpose than paper qualifications or
previous experience in political leadership as exemplified by the
excellent achievements of great leaders such as Sir Tafawa
Balewa, Sir Ahmadu Bello, Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, Chief Obafemi
Awolowo (locally) and internationally (President Bill Clinton,
President Nelson Mandela, President Barrack Obama and
several others). But then Dr. Jonathan was the first President
with the highest level of educational training (PhD) who
appeared a departure from the past and it would be
worthwhile to give such a candidate a chance. Furthermore,
President Jonathan was a former Deputy Governor, Governor,
Vice President, Acting President and President (May 2010 to
May 2011) and appeared well groomed for the Presidency.
Initial Glorious Steps:
President Jonathan, therefore, got to office first in 2010 and
then in 2011 with tremendous goodwill. He was judged as one
the masses could look up to. He was expected to provide a new
way of doing things. President Jonathan started well by being
the first President to vote the highest budget percentage to
Education in 2010. This was reversed to worse levels gradually.
He also appointed Professors Jega and Nnaji as INEC Chairman
and Minister for Power and Steel respectively.
Despite some irregularities, the 2011 elections were more
credible when compared to previous ‘selections’ (not elections)
of 2003 and 2007 organized by the administration of former
President Olusegun Obasanjo. President Jonathan took some
positive steps on power reforms but later bowed to pressures
from influential stakeholders and Prof. Nnaji was forced to
abandon his committed agenda. He was forced to resign from
office. Obviously President Jonathan had not been without some
initial positive steps in other sectors such as the NHIS,
agriculture, Aviation, railway sector, and others.
Why did President Jonathan fail later on?
(i) President Jonathan got to the presidency without a clear
idea of what he would do when in power and without an
intellectually prepared manifesto. There was no guiding policy.
He further failed to come up with same even well after he got
into power. He should have taken this right path expected of
individuals well prepared for leadership positions (with or
without higher educational degrees) or of his respected high
educational level of training. He flip-flopped on many
occasions because of this. To change our systemic anomalies for
good requires a Presidency with a rigorously debated manifesto
who knows clearly what went wrong and what needs to be done.
This applies to all public sectors. The manifesto whether
produced before or after getting into power (best produced
before getting into power) would have afforded the relevant
stakeholders and the opposition to strengthen positions or
offer alternative positions where necessary. This would have
helped shape such manifesto for the best. The Presidency would
have then taken positions with firmness, justice and fairness
and take the lead while others follow. Such a Presidency would
have put all on their toes and working for the nation thus
preventing unions from going on strike with different demands
which would have been previously addressed. Such a Presidency
would have had a clear domesticated position based on best
international practices that will bring sanity to the health
sector without allowing the contending parties to push the
government around. With a poorly prepared Presidency, we
have witnessed several months of strike actions by ASUU, ASUP
and others with devastating effects on an already comatose
educational sector. Same problems are responsible for the on-
going NMA strike action.

(ii) His government became corrupt, pardoned corrupt elements
who have cases in courts, paid huge billions to fake oil
marketers and continue to embrace well known corrupt
elements for self-preservation. (iii) With personal agenda of winning a second term in 2015
overriding national interest, President Jonathan has failed
further to fight corruption and bring our pervading insecurity
challenges to control. Security funds are mismanaged, soldiers
run away from war front, soldiers complain of poor welfarism,
there were complaints of ghost soldiers been paid when our
heroes on the battle field complain of wants, families of fallen
heroes neglected, no arrest of sponsors of terrorism and Boko
Haram now chasing soldiers out of their barracks while carting
away ammunition and taking over territories. The terrorists
have continued to kill us with impunity. There are confirmed
reports of wives and family members of our soldiers protesting
openly that their bread winners should not be sent to the war
fronts to confront Boko Haram with poor weaponry compared
to that of the terrorists. The Nigeria military has a glorious
past dating back to pre-independence days with our former
Head of State, General Aguiyi Ironsi (and our officers)
bringing peace to crisis-torn Congo in 1960 and 1964
(commanding an entire United Nations Contingent). We have
seen our military receiving global recognition in the not too
distant past for the roles our soldiers played in returning
countries such as Liberia, Sierra Leone and Sao Tome and
Principe to socio-political normalcy. Something is definitely
wrong somewhere with the current anti-terrorism campaign!
(iv) Oil theft has continued unchecked and has risen to
unprecedented level. Oil theft has gone so bad that states no
longer have enough funds from the federation account for
their programmmes. (v) President Jonathan became reckless by granting selective
justice as seen with misuse of security forces against political
opponents during the Ekiti State governorship election when
APC governors were turned back and further denied the use of
Akure Airport for departure and PDP Chieftains (Minister of
Police Affairs and Minister of State for Defence) were allowed
in. APC local leaders were equally arrested and harassed
during the election. The President allowed the landing of the
personal plane of former Governor Ali Modu Sheriff at the
Maiduguri Airport which had been previously shut and was not
opened for locals even during lesser hajj. The locals had to
travel to Kano with all the security implications to continue with
their journeys to Mecca. Sadly, reports say that Gov. Shettima
was denied the use of the same Maiduguri Airport by the
military just a day or two before the preferential treatment
granted former Gov. Ali Modu Sheriff. Unfortunately, no
lessons seemed to have been learnt as the recently conducted
governorship elections of Osun State was unduly militarized
with masked security forces shooting sporadically into the air
to intimidate Osun State voters. Furthermore, local APC and
National Executive members of the APC were harassed and
arrested on the eve of the election barring them from working
actively for the party’s victory at the polls. That APC won had
more clearly to do with the resoluteness of the Osun State
electorate who were more than determined to return Ogbeni
Rauf Aregbesola as governor for a second term in office than
the impartiality of the Federal Government.
The Way Forward:
Nigeria needs a new President with innate leadership ability,
intelligence, charisma, visionary ideology, self-discipline,
firmness and sincerity of purpose to move the nation forward.
Nigeria needs a patriotic youth with integrity (with or without
previous political leadership experience) who will be in a better
position to manage the Presidency based on better
comprehension of emerging local and global trends.