The National Secretary of the Board of Trustees of the National Coalition for Jonathan and Sambo Presidency (NACOJSP), Dr. Benjamin Onoriode Irikefe, in this interview, spoke about the ongoing verification of the various groups rooting for the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan by the Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, Prof. Rufai Ahmed Alkali and chances of President Jonathan in the 2015 general election, among others sundry political issues.
Excerpts:
What is your view about the just concluded verification exercise of the non-government organizations rooting for Dr. Goodluck Jonathan to be President in 2015?
As a leader of the largest NGO rooting for President Goodluck for 2015, one can confidently say that Prof.Alkali did an excellent job. The process was very thorough, transparent and inclusive. I am not surprise because Prof. Alkali has an enviable and proven track record of excellence and achievements. I can unequivocally say that the groups are very satisfied with the performance of Prof. Alkali within the short time he has come on board.
What do you think is the significance of the exercise?
With over 10,000 viable groups rooting for President Goodluck Jonathan it is crystal clear that the victory of President Goodluck Jonathan is already a self fulfilling prophecy come 2015. I am very much aware that despite the fact that the process has wind down, thousands and thousands of groups are still going for verification. These groups are from all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory. They are domiciled in the 774 Local Government Area of the country. The groups are peopled with individuals from over 300 ethnic and sub-ethnic groups from all nooks and crannies of Nigeria.
With all sorts of crises in virtually all sectors in Nigeria, what are the chances of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015?
Like I have said before, President Jonathan’s victory at the forthcoming election is a foregone conclusion. His victory will be landslide, of epochal proportions, because he has done more than any Nigerian President before him. He is a political miracle worker, a lover of peace and progress. Also the opposition has no credible candidate that can march President Goodluck. The candidates they have can best be described as workmen, jobmen, economic cankerworms or career opportunists. They are no march for President Goodluck Jonathan.
It is believed in certain quarters that the opposition is waxing stronger, what is your take about this?
I totally disagree with you. The house of the opposition is a disaster waiting to happen. The house is at the verge of irreparable implosion. Just watch out many of their bigwigs will soon be rushing back to the People Democratic Party (PDP) because they realize that the PDP is the only genuine political party in Nigeria.
Has the military not failed in handling the security challenges in the country, especially in the North East?
The military deserves a big pass mark. Insurgency is not an easy security challenge to tackle. Even the United States and NATO are not finding it easy to fight insurgency and international terrorism. By every standard, the Nigeria Military and Security Agencies are doing a lot. The only thing is that as professionals they are not making too much noise about their exploits and success stories so as not to let their operational strategies out of the bag. They need commendation and support.
Some stakeholders are of the opinion that the pro-Jonathan groups are jumping the gun, especially when the ban of campaigns have not been lifted, is this position not correct of your group and others rooting for Jonathan?
Let me tell you, all these thousands and thousands of groups jostling for President Goodluck Jonathan are not political parties, rather they are genuine, freely associating groups angling for Jonathan to be President in 2015. Nigeria constitution guarantees freedom of association. The opposition contenders do not have genuine followers except hirelings and hangers-on. If they have true supporters they would have come out in the open to support their preferred candidate the way we are doing for Jonathan.
Do you have any worry about 2015?
I am worried about desperate politicians in the opposition who have been doing all sorts of things openly and covertly to heat up the polity and distort the security landscape but we thank God for President Goodluck Jonathan. He is the only person that can save Nigeria from monumental ruins and imminent disintegration. Frankly, Nigeria will not have any meaningful future after 2015, if President Goodluck Jonathan does not become President. But thank God he is bound to win the 2015 Presidential election with a landslide victory.
