President Goodluck Jonathan
declared yesterday that he was ready to leave if Nigerians had demonstrated
that they no longer wanted him as their president through the ballot box. “I was ready to lose the election if Nigerians did not want me.
If I was ready to be disgraced out of office to sanitise the system, that is to
tell you I am ready to sanitise the system to bring about investments in our
country,” Jonathan stated.
Speaking at a breakfast meeting on the Nigerian economy
organised by the African Business Roundtable in New York, USA, Jonathan also
noted that the reason why many Nigerian political leaders fight to sit tight in
office was because of the fear of the unknown.
He, however, assured that he has vowed that the electoral
reforms embarked upon by his administration would continue to ensure that the
choice of the people emerge at every election, adding that he was fully
committed to solving the nation’s electoral problems.
The Nigerian president added: “We are totally committed to
solving our problem. We started with the electoral process and we have
demonstrated our commitment in sanitising that system because when the people
put you there you will be committed to serving the people.”
He assured investors that he would do everything to sanitise the
investment environment to attract the much-needed investment and create jobs
for the teeming youth who, he observed, make up the majority of the nation’s
population.
Noting that this critical segment of the society could not be
ignored as they were the ones that needed housing and jobs, Jonathan expressed
hope that Nigeria could join the elite group of the world economies between
eight and 10 years as it has been proved in other countries that it does not
take eternity to solve the development problems of a country.
On Nigerians in Diaspora who want the opportunity to contribute
their quota to the development of the country, he promised to carry the
Nigerian people along in the governance process even though he conceded that it
was not possible to involve all in the administration of the country at the
same time. “We have a lot of eggheads in Nigeria. Unfortunately, not all will
be ministers but we appoint them into teams where we have challenges to help
address them. We meet monthly. Soon our economy will be what you will be proud
of,” he said.
Present at the meeting were former British prime minister Tony
Blair, former United States secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, international
investors and captains of industry from Nigeria.
Jonathan told them that Nigeria has numerous problems but his
government has decided to prioritise its options in order to systematically
deal with the challenges.
Also speaking, Tony Blair urged Nigerians not to always accept
the stance of the opposition on issues as they were not speaking for the
majority of the citizens but a few vested interests.
Drumming support for President Jonathan, the former British
prime minister lauded his effort to reform the political and economic sectors
of the country, which he said was a difficult but necessary thing to do.
“One of the things I learned since leaving office is that
it is not easy to get the advice and take the decisions. Each set of the
reforms are hard and tough. I know how difficult it is to make changes. When
you are doing the changes, it is very, very tough and difficult for government.
On the other hand, it is absolutely necessary,” he said.
Blair said with what was going on in Nigeria, the country was on
its way up, noting that once Nigeria was on its way up, it meant that Africa
was on its way up.
He said, “My plea is to stick with it, support the president and
the ministers in making these changes. My plea to Nigerians is: Don’t be
deterred by the voices that say they are representing the majority of the
public but often are actually representing the minority or vested interests.
“Among all these difficulties and challenges, there is hope of
optimism and opportunities for Nigeria. We all know that in politics as in
life, the difficult thing is not in the saying but in the doing. It was all
about the courage to make the changes that are necessary.
Credit: Leadership
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