One of Nigeria's most
influential online newspapers, The Trent has named former President
Goodluck Jonathan Person of the Year 2015.
"We are
delighted to launch our Person of the Year Award with such a deserving
statesman," the newspaper's, President and Executive Editor, Ms. Aziza Uko told journalists in Lagos, Monday.
"This marks our second anniversary and our Editorial Board decided to
launch this award to celebrate the best among us, to present to the
country, especially, the young generation, real symbols of hope."
According to Ms. Uko,
“More than any Nigerian alive, we believe that Jonathan represents the
spirit of a united Nigeria governed under democratic ideals and
principles. By honoring him, we are simply re-kindling faith in the
possibility of a new Nigeria.”
Earlier,
in an editorial to celebrate the former president as Person of the Year
2015, The Trent noted that by leaving the stage when the ovation was
loudest, “Jonathan opened a golden page in the chapters of democracy’s
history, showing clearly to the world that Africa was not a continent of
incompetent leaders and despotic rulers who sit tight in office at the
expense of their nations’ future.”
Meanwhile,
former President Goodluck Jonathan has described the Person of the Year
Award 2015 conferred on him by The Trent online newspaper as a
“pleasant surprise.”
“This
is a pleasant surprise. I feel extremely humbled. I couldn’t have
imagined that a group of young people would consider me worthy of this
great honour months after I left office as President.
"Usually,
people like us receive awards when we are in office because of the
position and power that we have. It is moments like this that you
actually realize the people who are truly your friends.
"I
see this award as an encouragement not just for me but the upcoming
generations of Nigerians. I see it also as a celebration of how far
Nigeria has come as a democracy. I commend the Editorial Board of The
Trent and wish them the very best in their journalistic endeavors,” he
said.
Since
his exit from office in May 2015, former President Jonathan’s profile
has risen globally. He has been extolled by local and foreign media, as
well as foreign governments for saving Nigeria from what observers say
could have been a bloody social-political crisis in the world’s largest
black democracy.
Below is the full Editorial Announcing the Award By The Trent
The Trent Unveils Goodluck Jonathan As Person Of The Year 2015
On May 29,
Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan left office as President of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. He did so after the embarrassment of being the
first elected incumbent president who ran for, but lost,
re-election—losing to a candidate of the runner-up opposition party.
President Jonathan conceded defeat and called to congratulate his
opponent even before the end of the electoral process.
Since
he left office, former President Jonathan’s profile has risen sharply
in the global community. He has been lauded by local and foreign media,
as well as the foreign government for that historic phone call that
conceded defeat and averted a much expected bloodshed that would have
ensued had he won the election. To many, Jonathan has become an icon of
peace, hero of democracy, and a beacon of hope for a better future, not
only for Nigeria, but also for Africa as a whole.
A
dispassionate appraisal of his administration shows that in many
respects, Goodluck Jonathan was not only a sterling democrat, but also
an exceptional president that Nigeria has ever had based on his
achievements. These qualities are the reason why our Editorial Board
has named former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan The Trent’s PERSON OF THE YEAR 2015.
On
the domestic front, former President Jonathan had done a great service
to Nigeria’s economy to the extent that six months after he left office,
his successor’s flagship ministers shocked Nigerians by publicly
admitting that rather than embark on new projects in 2016, they would
only endeavour to build on Jonathan’s achievements. What are the facts?
For
a country that had witnessed a rot in infrastructure, President
Jonathan’s silent revamping mission, through his Transformation Agenda,
had been constructing roads and bridges, building dams for electricity
and agriculture, resuscitating the railway, revamping the airports and
equipping them, equipping hospitals, creating new schools and
universities, especially the almajiri schools in the north, among
others. In addition, Jonathan’s government had started the
diversification of Nigeria’s economy away from its mono focus on oil.
For example, during Jonathan’s administration, services contributed 52
per cent to the economy, while oil’s contribution to the GDP declined to
14 per cent from over 33 per cent.
Agriculture,
which used to be the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy before the discovery
of oil, was given a big boost by Jonathan’s government. He dealt a blow
on the racketeering in the fertiliser distribution, ending the N50
billion per annum fraud in less than 3 months. Jonathan’s government
introduced e-wallet system to bypass corrupt middlemen and deliver
fertiliser and seedlings to 12 million farmers is an innovation that has
attracted the attention of the world. The United Nations, World Bank,
the African Union, India, China, Argentina, and other countries are all
adopting the pioneering initiative of Jonathan’s government.
Jonathan’s
government gave strong encouragement to local production of food, which
increased food production in Nigeria in all fields: rice, cocoa, palm
oil, cassava, sorghum, etc. Nigeria is now 85 percent food sufficient.
Our export bill on food had dropped from N1.4 trillion per annum to
below N700 million. This had created a new crop of young farmer
millionaires. That the 2012 flood disaster did not cause any food
shortage in Nigeria was a testimony to President Jonathan’s boost in
agriculture. Furthermore, that the global downturn and devaluation of
the Naira did not affect food prices in Nigeria confirms that there was
surplus food in the market. These did not happen by accident.
During
the Jonathan administration, manufacturing sector’s share of the GDP
had climbed from 4 per cent to about 7 per cent. What is particularly
significant is that his administration’s automotive policy had given a
fillip to local vehicle manufacture and assembly. In addition to Innoson
Motors that had started local manufacture of vehicles in Nnewi, Anambra
State, other big auto companies like Nissan, Toyota, Honda, etc, which
hitherto were importing fully assembled cars into the country for sale,
have changed their policy by setting up plants in Nigeria. Automobile
imports have dropped by 20%, even as 20 other auto makers had either
begun exploration or indicated an interest to set up plants in Nigeria.
This had boosted the economy by creating jobs and reducing capital
flight.
Furthermore, Jonathan’s government policies
and practice had placed Nigeria as the number one destination in foreign
direct investment in Africa as Nigeria’s economy was placed as the 26th
in the world and the biggest in Africa, surpassing South Africa.
Since
he left office, the former president has been summoned for several high
profile international assignments, not because he conceded defeat after
serving only one term but based on his democratic credentials while
serving the one term. The most important of these credentials is his
passionate belief in the transparency of elections, which he executed
since he came to power.
Through a deliberate policy
of granting autonomy to Nigeria’s electoral umpire, the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC), and non-interference in the
judiciary process, the “Jonathan effect” had taken power away from
incumbent political office holders (including, ironically, President
Jonathan himself), political god fathers, and electoral officers and
returned it to the electorate. The trust the President fostered in the
electoral system had encouraged more trustworthy and visionary people to
venture into politics, to contest and win in the last (2015) general
elections, as attested to by the improved quality of men and women who
presently sit in the 8th National Assembly and among the state governors
as well.. The trust in the electoral system also makes elected
officials to concentrate on satisfying the electorate with superior
performance to be returned.
On the foreign scene,
several months after he left office, former President Jonathan was
appointed leader of the 33-nation Commonwealth International observer
mission to monitor the Tanzanian general elections held in October
2015. The Daily News of Tanzania reported that Tanzanians were
happy that the former Nigerian leader, whom they described as “a hero of
free and fair election in Africa” would lead the observer mission
believing that Jonathan’s presence would bring credibility to the polls.
Yet,
another of former President Jonathan’s democratic credential, which has
raised his stature within the international community, was his
commitment to the multiparty democracy; there were no political
assassinations, no political prisoners, and no harassment of opponents
or critics of his administration as were obtainable before President
Jonathan came to power—and after he was voted out of office. Compared to
his predecessors and successor, Goodluck Jonathan’s respect for the
rule of law, individual liberty, and freedom of expression had raised
the bar as the reference point in the political and social climate of
our country.
For example, it is on record that while he was the Commander-in-Chief, former President Goodluck Jonathan was attacked by miscreants twice during his re-electioneering campaign in Katsina and Bauchi. The miscreants went beyond barricading his convoy to actually stoning him. Yet, no single shot was fired at the attackers; nobody was injured other than some of the President’s security details who were wounded by the attackers and hospitalised. President Jonathan did not order his security details to open fire on the miscreants on the spot. Neither did he ask that their leadership be fished out in their various homes and be shot - because President Jonathan believed that his political ambition was not worth the blood of any Nigerian citizen, including those miscreants who attacked his convoy and stoned him in Katsina and Bauchi.
It is instructive to note that no Nigerian politician alive commands the enormous goodwill, followership and dignity that Jonathan attained in a moment of history bestowed upon him by destiny and fate. By leaving the stage when the ovation was loudest, Jonathan opened a golden page in the chapters of democracy’s history, showing clearly to the world that Africa was not a continent of incompetent leaders and despotic rulers who sit tight in office at the expense of their nations’ future. Jonathan demonstrated rare leadership where others failed to lead, putting him in the class of greatness where leaders only in the mold of Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, Theodore Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill belong.
For example, it is on record that while he was the Commander-in-Chief, former President Goodluck Jonathan was attacked by miscreants twice during his re-electioneering campaign in Katsina and Bauchi. The miscreants went beyond barricading his convoy to actually stoning him. Yet, no single shot was fired at the attackers; nobody was injured other than some of the President’s security details who were wounded by the attackers and hospitalised. President Jonathan did not order his security details to open fire on the miscreants on the spot. Neither did he ask that their leadership be fished out in their various homes and be shot - because President Jonathan believed that his political ambition was not worth the blood of any Nigerian citizen, including those miscreants who attacked his convoy and stoned him in Katsina and Bauchi.
It is instructive to note that no Nigerian politician alive commands the enormous goodwill, followership and dignity that Jonathan attained in a moment of history bestowed upon him by destiny and fate. By leaving the stage when the ovation was loudest, Jonathan opened a golden page in the chapters of democracy’s history, showing clearly to the world that Africa was not a continent of incompetent leaders and despotic rulers who sit tight in office at the expense of their nations’ future. Jonathan demonstrated rare leadership where others failed to lead, putting him in the class of greatness where leaders only in the mold of Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandela, Theodore Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill belong.
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