Nobody is yet to match my achievements - Jonathan

Goodluck Jonathan

 

In a statement issued by the spokesperson of former president, Ikechukwu Eze, on Friday, former President Goodluck Jonathan, has hit out at critics of his administration, saying his achievements in government are yet to be matched by his successor. 

 

Below is the full text of the statement in full:

 

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Our attention has been drawn to the claims made by the Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima on Thursday at a book launch to the effect that former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan wasted the goodwill he commanded because of bad governance and poor choices in office. He was also said to have accused Jonathan of believing that he was behind the kidnap of the Chibok girls.

 

As a man who had never seen anything good in the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan on account of party and other differences,  it has remained our considered view that in a democracy, Governor Kashim Shettima and others like him are entitled to their opinion,  no matter how jaundiced.

 

However, it is a sad commentary on the character of some of our politicians that they go to any length to make spurious statements, in pursuit of the sad narrative to remain politically correct.  We cannot be deceived by his crocodile tears and patronizing claim that “Jonathan is essentially a decent man”, which is a ploy he deployed to justify his false allegation of a lost glory.

 

The man who today speaks of squandered goodwill should be able to tell Nigerians what percentage of the votes Jonathan got in 2011 from Borno State at the height of that his envisaged glory according to Shettima, and what it became in subsequent elections. What was obvious yesterday and has remained so today is that Governor Shettima and those who think like him never liked Jonathan based on some parochial and paternalistic sentiments.

 

We didn’t expect anything less from Governor Shettima, knowing the ignoble roles he played in frustrating the war waged by the past administration against Boko Haram, even in his own Borno State.

 

He should be able to tell us if it was Jonathan’s poor choices that led the Governor to expose students of Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok to avoidable danger, in total disregard of a Federal Government directive to the Governors in the three states most affected by Boko Haram to relocate their students writing the West African School Certificate Examinations to safe zones.

 

The governor is now denying that he had no hand in the kidnap of the Chibok girls even before anybody accused him of culpability. However, we share the view of those who insist that the governor had other things up his sleeve when he promised the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) that he would secure the girls, and ended up doing the very opposite, by deliberately abandoning them to their fate, without any security presence in their school.

 

It is instructive that while other governors in the zone heeded the security advice, Shettima remained the only one that flagrantly flouted it. Should we also fail to point out that his decision to reward the principal of Chibok Secondary School, who was uncharacteristically absent on the night terrorists stormed the school, with the post of a commissioner, did throw up more questions than answers?

 

Talking about accountability, perhaps, Shettima  should also do well to explain to the good people of Borno State and Nigerians what he did with the over N60 billion Local Governments fund, left by his predecessor, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff.

 

We understand Governor Shettima and those who spoke like him accused Jonathan of bad governance and poor choices, and we would like to know if it was bad governance that led Jonathan to assemble a-yet-to be matched crop of dynamic cabinet and economic management team made up of tested technocrats like Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in Finance ministry, Shamsuddeen Usman in Planning, Olusegun Aganga in Trade and Investments as well as Akinwumi Adesina leading the charge in Agriculture.  The efforts of the Jonathan administration in repositioning Nigeria’s economy remain self-evident and it must have in deed been poor choices at their best for Jonathan and his team to have recorded the following key achievements:

 

*Nigeria’s Gross domestic Product rose to $503 billion in 2013 and became Africa’s largest economy and 26th in the world; from 3rd and 4th respectively.

 

*Nigeria became the number one destination for Foreign Direct Investment in Africa under former President Jonathan, with the numbers rising from $24.9 million as at 2007 to over $35 billion in 2014.

 

*Jonathan Government delivered over 25,000 kilometres of motor able federal roads from just a quarter of that number in 2011.

 

*The Jonathan Administration resuscitated the railways in the country after about 30-years of hiatus

 

*Jonathan’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda ended fertilizer racketeering, encouraged more young Nigerians to take to farming, boosted local food production and took the country closer to self-sufficiency in food production by recording more than 50% reduction in food imports. It was as a result of this that the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations, for the first time, voted Nigeria the largest producer of Cassava in the world.

 

*Power generation under Jonathan was boosted to about 5,000 megawatts in 2014 up from 2,000 megawatts in 2011.

 

*Prices of food and other household items remained stable and inflationary pressure was down to a single digit.

 

*Under Jonathan, Nigeria controlled clinically Ebola outbreak to the admiration of the whole world,  became Guinea-worm-free and also eradicated polio, with United States billionaire and renowned philanthropist Bill Gates, praising Nigeria’s successes against polio as one of the great world achievements of 2014. Sadly polio has returned to the country with the likes of Shettima in charge of the endemic states.

 

*Under Jonathan Life expectancy in Nigeria rose from 47 years in 2010 to 54 years in 2015.

 

*Just before Jonathan left office, CNN Money projected that Nigeria’s economy in 2015 would become the third fastest growing economy in the world at 7 per cent behind China at 7.3 per cent and Qatar at 7.1 per cent.

 

Was it bad governance and poor choices that reformed the political and electoral processes to the extent that the United Nations is now pleading with the government of the day to strive to maintain the standards established by Jonathan?

 

Fortunately, Nigerians know where they stand with all of their leaders. All those who are calling Jonathan names today, and accusing him of having become quite unpopular, should simply take a walk on the streets of any Nigerian city as real leaders do. That way, they will accurately gauge their own approval and test their popularity with the Nigerian people.

 

On the book entitled “On a Platter of Gold- How Jonathan won and lost Nigeria” written by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, we have watched for sometime as some outrageous fabrications are extracted from its pages day after day by the media.

 

When the publication of the book, with an ominous title was first mooted, we knew it will be full of bile and sour grapes.  We didn’t expect truth, sincerity and accuracy of narration, given that the author who was sacked from his ministerial position by the subject of the book, is now the spokesman for the ruling APC.

 

We will therefore like to dissociate former President Jonathan from the book’s salacious contents, with all the obvious distortions, lies and exaggerations.  Its pages are populated with gossip, politically influenced newspaper articles, uncoordinated raw data and unproven claims. Sadly, the author did not help matters, as there was no rigour or in-depth investigations towards establishing the veracity of  the allegations the book contained.

 

For instance, it is ridiculous for the author to have claimed that the President was forced to sack a certain minister by another cabinet member when the obvious truth known to all key members of the administration was that the President acted based on the recommendation of an internal committee that investigated the matter. This, unfortunately, is the kind of baseless claims and narrative that run through the entire book, and it would be pointless devoting our time towards making a case by case response to all its ridiculous allegations.

 

We will like to remind Nigerians of what former President Jonathan said earlier in the year when a similar book was published, that only the key actors in his government and in the 2015 presidential elections could give an exact account of what transpired, not speculations and conjectures by third party spectators. That time will come someday.

Jonathan described subsidy scam as 'oily business'- Saraki

 

former President Goodluck Jonathan 

 

The Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, said former President Goodluck Jonathan was never desperate for power, but got there by providence, Punch reports.

 

He stated this on Thursday in Abuja at the unveiling of a book titled, “On a Platter of Gold: How Jonathan won and lost Nigeria,“ written by the National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Mallam Bolaji Abudullahi.

 

 Saraki, who was the chief host on the occasion, said “a country produces the kind of leadership it gets.’’

 

“I think it is us Nigerians, that produce the kind of leaders we get; no matter what you say about Jonathan, I don’t think he was someone who was desperate for power,“ he said.

 

He added that Jonathan was not someone that was prepared for leadership but became the President of the country either by “misfortune or fortune.“

 

Saraki added that it was unfortunate that Nigerians knew the right things to do, but would not do it but would keep playing the blame game.

 

Saraki, who expressed optimism that the book would be cherished by Nigerians going by its quality, used the occasion to share two experiences he had with Jonathan.

 

The Senate President said, “I like to share one or two things that will probably summarise the former President Jonathan. I remember when I was then a PDP senator and I came across this issue of fuel subsidy and the way the country was losing close to about N1.3tn.

“In the history of this country, I don’t think of any singular kind of level of corruption as huge as that. I had a motion already that I wanted to present on the floor of the Senate.  But I felt as a member of the ruling party at that time, it was only proper I discussed it with the President (first) maybe some action can be taken so that I can step down the motion.

 

He added, “I booked an appointment to see Mr. President and I went with my paper.

 

“I started with the background of how people brought  in petroleum products. I said Mr. President, in the past, people use to get award letters from the NNPC to bring in PMS, DPK, and make 10, 20 per cent profit. I said sir, they’ve taken it to another level, now, and they get an order to bring in products and they don’t want to make 10 or 20 per cent any more.

“They will get an offer to bring in a cargo of 20,000 litres they will bring in 5,000 litres but stamped it for 20,000 litres and instead of making 10 per cent; they make ten times the amount. I was telling the President thinking the President will get very agitated, but he only said, ‘Senator Saraki, you know this oil business is very oily.”’

 

The Senate President said he was stunned.

 

Saraki, however, conceded that that was the kind of person the then President was.

 

While recalling the second encounter, Saraki said, “The second encounter I will recollect was the day I decided I am going to contest to be President. I felt that I didn’t want Jonathan to hear it as news.

“I booked an appointment to see him. I went to the Villa and he said ‘come in, come in. how can I help you? I looked at the President of a third world country and said Mr. President I came to tell you that I am going to be contesting for your seat.

“Jonathan looked at me and said ‘oh, okay, good luck, good luck.’ If it were any other person may be I would not have left the Villa but that again sums up Goodluck Jonathan.”

 

The Governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, who was the chairman on the occasion, said Jonathan squandered the unprecedented goodwill he enjoyed at the beginning of his Presidency to the calibre of persons he surrounded himself with as well as a series of terrible choices he made.

 

Abdullahi challenged those who had a different perspective to write their own accounts.

How ex-AGF stopped Joanthan from removing me as governor - Kashim Shettima

Kashim Shettima

 

While speaking on Thursday at the launch of a book titled "On a Platter of Gold: How Jonathan Won and Lost Nigeria", the governor of Borno state, Kashim Shettima, said President Goodluck Jonathan nearly removed him in 2014 with the belief that he was responsible for the disappearance of Chibok schoolgirls. 

 

According to TheCable, Shettima said Mohammed Bello Adoke, who was the attorney-general of the federation at the time, told the president "you don’t have the power to remove even an elected councillor. Adoke’s position was supported by Taminu Turaki, minister of special duties," Shettima said.

”The people around Jonathan told him that I was hiding the girls, that there was no abduction. They said I was hiding the girls to embarrass him,” he said.

 

He described Jonathan as a “decent person” who was misled by the people around him.

 

”The whole world was talking about the abduction for three weeks before Jonathan spoke with me for the first time. He summoned the principal of the school and the commissioner for education to Abuja and ordered the IG to arrest them,” Shettima said.

 

He also revealed that the police commissioner and  Chibok DPO were summoned while the brigade commander, who was an Ijawman, was left out.

”Those who advised the president did not want him to know the truth. They knew that the Ijaw officer, who was a captain, would tell a more credible story,” the governor said, insinuation that the kidnap narrative was shaped to present it as a northern conspiracy again Jonathan. 

Go and beg Obasanjo if you want to win - Jonathan Advises Atiku

Former president, Goodluck Jonathan has reportedly sent a message to Atiku Abubakar to go and beg Chief Olusegun Obasanjo if he wants to get the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential ticket. 

Although the former vice president has not publicly indicated the party he would be defecting to after he resigned from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), there is speculation that he might want to run on the platform of the. 

The Nation reports that Jonathan reportedly advised Atiku to reach out to Obasanjo in spite of the fact that the latter has quit partisan politics as “he is still a strong factor in shaping the future of the nation in 2019 because he is a force among the revered kingmakers.” It was reported that Jonathan had lobbied founding members of the PDP to join the Atiku train and that most PDP governors had also bought into it. A source privy to the development said: “The unfolding script on Atiku’s return to PDP has the blessing of some founding fathers of PDP who are out to salvage the party. 

A major component is a likely waiver for the ex-VP to contest the party’s presidential primaries. “So far, Atiku is complying with the secret accord for his return to PDP. A formal declaration in Yola is being expected either on Wednesday or December 6 as indicated in a tentative timetable. “But in one of the negotiation shuttles with Atiku, ex-President Jonathan added a caveat that the former Vice President can comfortably secure PDP ticket and win the 2019 poll if he begs ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo. “We were all shocked by this condition because Obasanjo is no longer in partisan politics. 

But Jonathan said Obasanjo is an institution whose action or inaction could make or mar the electoral fortunes of Atiku. “The former President also believes that Obasanjo may persuade any of the presidential aspirants to withdraw for Atiku after weighing all the indices. He said if Obasanjo could reconcile with him, he can also forgive Atiku. “As a matter of fact, Jonathan cited cases of chairmanship aspirants in PDP travelling to Abeokuta to seek his blessing.

“We are expecting Atiku to comply with this proviso because we want to begin the media war (based on facts and figures) in earnest. “Jonathan’s position on Obasanjo has been endorsed by some founding fathers of PDP, especially the military class which contrived the existence of the party.” 

Revealed: Ex Gov. Mimiko Asked Jonathan to Prosecute Buhari for 'Certificate Forgery' in New Book

While speaking in his upcoming book: ‘On a Platter of Gold: How Jonathan Won and Lost Nigeria’, Bolaji Abdullahi, a minister under Goodluck Jonathan (2011-2014), alleged that former Ondo state governor, Olusegun Mimiko, wanted presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari prosecuted for “certificate forgery” and disqualified from contesting in the 2015 election.

According to TheCable, Mimiko wanted the then attorney general of the federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke to issue a fiat that would have given the power to a private citizen to prosecute Muhamamdu Buhari for certificate forgery which could have led to his disqualification from the election, “or at the very least, disrupt the electoral process”.

But Adoke, despite the pressure, refused to initiate process for Buhari's disqualification, hence, he was blamed by supporters and even Patience Jonathan for the eventual loss of the former president.

Revealing further, the former minister in his book, claimed that Adoke blocked the move by Mimiko and others after he argued that there was no legal basis to prosecute Muhammadu Buhari.

Recall that Buhari had initially claimed that his secondary school certificate was with the military authorities, but they denied having it. He later got a replacement from his alma mater, Government College, Katsina.

In the advance copy of the book, Abdullahi described Jonathan as a man who had “a distinct aversion for taking any action that could be regarded as unlawful or illegal”, and as a result of this, the attorney-general became central to most of the decisions the former president had to make.

Abdullahi said further that Mimiko was at the forefront of the agitation to have Adoke issue a fiat that would have given the power to a private citizen to prosecute Buhari for certificate forgery which could have led to his disqualification from the election.

Adoke stood his ground as pressure grew for him to kick-start the process of disqualifying Buhari a situation that made Jonathan’s supporters, including his wife, blame the attorney-general for the loss.

It was also reported that Patience Jonathan called Adoke a “useless man” for not helping to disqualify candidate Muhammadu Buhari.

Abdullahi wrote: “Two days after the election, Adoke had gone to see the president in respect of the appointment of a new chief judge for the FCT. While waiting in the outer room, the First Lady walked in. He rose to greet her. But she took one long look at him and hissed: ‘Useless man. You betrayed my husband. Now that he has lost the election, you are happy.


"It was the same Attorney General that Bayo Ojo used to disqualify Atiku for Obasanjo (in 2007). It was the same office that (Mike) Aondoakaa used to make dead man (Umaru Musa Yar’Adua) to rule Nigeria. But when it comes to my husband, you will be shouting, constitution, constitution."

Going further, he wrote: “There were a number of other issues that led many in the president’s immediate political circle to conclude that Adoke was the reason that President Jonathan failed to act with the required toughness on some issues,” Abdullahi wrote.


“When in May 2013 the president declared a state of emergency in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, some of the president’s men, led by Ijaw leader Edwin Clark, had asked him to sack the governors of those states as part of the emergency measures. Adoke, on the other hand, counselled the president against sacking the governors, insisting that such action had no constitutional backing. Clark fired back, asking the president to sack Adoke himself.


“Prominent lawyers and civil society groups promptly weighed in on the side of the minister, and commended him for being a ‘constitutional purist’. They noted that he could easily have allowed the president to act differently, if he were so minded, relying on the precedent set by President Obasanjo in the case of Plateau State and Governor Joshua Dariye in 2004 – a matter concerning which the Supreme Court had declined to make a definite ruling.”

'PEOPLE COME TO ME EVERYDAY THAT THEY WANT ME BACK' - GOODLUCK JONATHAN

As 2019 approcahes, the political permutations begin to unfold and in this interview with Dele Momodu, former President Goodluck Jonathan has spoken on the possibility of him contesting come 2019.

When asked if he'll contest in 2019, he said, “contest again? No. People come to me every day saying they want me back. I’m always moved to tears whenever I go out and see the huge crowds shouting GEJ, we want you, even in the North. Instead of getting swollen headed, I actually reflect on my achievements and mistakes and feel humbled and feel very sober… I have never been a man of inordinate ambition. I’m a man of very modest means. I hardly travel because of the logistical costs. I’ve played my part and I have moved on".

“What if your party decides to invite you again?’ he was asked, “are you not aware that our Party has zoned the Presidency to the North, and the Chairmanship to the South?. Even Fayose that has declared his interest may face big challenges because of the decision of our party” he said

“So there is no way you can ever contest again?”, he answered “I’m not God but I sincerely doubt the possibility”.

BUHARI HAS BROUGHT MORE CORRUPTION THAN CHANGE - JONATHAN

FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan declared, on Saturday, that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) government had delivered more corruption than the promised change.

Jonathan, in a statement which was a reaction to an interview granted by the APC spokesman, Bolaji Abdullahi, over his assertion that the troubled Abdulrasheed Maina, is a legacy of the Jonathan government, said the APC was engaged in revisionism.

The statement, signed on behalf of Jonathan’s media team by his special Assistant, New Media, Reno Omokri, said: “This is historical revisionism of the highest order and is a major feature of the dishonest character trait that the APC has become known for.”

Jonathan said Maina was recruited into the civil service long before the PDP administration came into office.

He also stated that when his alleged infractions were uncovered, the Jonathan administration dismissed him from the civil service and declared him wanted.

Narrating the events that had played out since Maina’s reinstatement, he stated that the APC administration should be embarrassed by its one day, one scandal government in the last two years.

The statement listed the other alleged scandals that had broken out under the APC.

“Whether it is Maina; the NNPC $25 billion scam; Babachir’s grass cutter scam; Amina Mohammed’s $300 million timber scandal; the N700 million ministry of mines and steel website; Buratai’s Dubai house; the Ikoyi billions; the budget padding scandal, the missing budget scandal; no Paracetamol in the State House Clinic scandal, the fact remains that the Buhari administration has delivered more corruption than change to the Nigerian people.


“We therefore ask Bolaji Abdullahi and the APC to keep their beloved Maina and leave former President Jonathan and the PDP out of their love affair with him,” the statement read.

We did not freeze Jonathan’s accounts – Presidency

Presidency has debunked the claims by some protesters in Bayelsa state that the allowances due to the former President Goodluck Jonathan have been stopped and his accounts frozen.

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#DasukiGate |Jonathan Must Speak Out – PDP

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has called on former President Goodluck Jonathan to speak out on the controversial $2.1bn meant for the purchase of arms to fight Boko Haram insurgency during his tenure but which was allegedly shared by some influential politicians.
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For Nig President,Goodluck Jonathan Urges Nigerians To Pray And WorkFor The Good Of The Country.

Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday enjoined Nigerians to pray and work for the good of the country, stressing that God would see the nation through its period of hardship.
Jonathan stated this yesterday while addressing the congregation at the Word Illumination Ministry in Gwarimpa, Abuja, where the former President, his wife and well wishers had gone to dedicate and thank God for his first grandchild.

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Men arrested after they trailed former President Jonathan's convoy to his home in Bayelsa (photos)

Former President Goodluck Jonathan this morning escaped death by whiskers after the men pictured above, intercepted and drove into a short motorcade conveying the former President from the Julius Berger bridge area of the state capital Yenagoa.

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According to a report on Leadership and other media platforms, the militants trailed and chased GEJ's convoy to the entrance of his Yenagoa private residence in the Kpansia area of the town, before they were overpowered and arrested by a combined team of security operatives attached to the former President. Members of the arrested gang have been taken to the Bayelsa State Police Command for further investigation and interrogation. More details later...

Source LIB.....

Goodluck Jonathan Mourns Tor Tiv,Describes Him As A Great Reformist.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has expressed sadness over the death of the chairman of the Benue State Traditional Council and the Paramount Ruler of Tiv Land, the Tor Tiv, Alfred Akawe Torkula.read more

Jonathan is like Jesus Christ - Fayose.

                                         

-Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State and chairman of the PDP national electoral panel, Bayelsa State yesterday described Dr. Goodluck Jonathan former president’s participation in the primary election in the state as a “home coming” .

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Female Minister Under Jonathan Stole Trillions — America

 




Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, has revealed that the government of Goodluck Jonathan had totally destroyed the country in many ways that Nigerians are not even aware.
Oshiomhole, who was on the entourage of President Muhammadu Buhari to the United States, said Nigeria had in Buhari a President who talked with confidence unlike “a President that is blabbing and is not sure of what the issues are.”
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Unpaid Election Largesse,APGA Members Plan To Storm Jonathan's Hometown.

The All Progressive Grand Alliance, says its members across the country will stage a protest march to President Goodluck Jonathan’s hometown, Otuoke, Bayelsa State, over the alleged refusal of the President to give them their share of election largesse which he promised them before the last presidential poll.
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NHRC Warns Presidential Candidates And Politicians Against Hate Speeches Capable Of Inciting Violence.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday charged the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Dr Goodluck Jonathan and the All Progressives Congress (APC) General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), to refrain from making statements capable of inciting their followers to violence. read more

Bayelsa Monarch Says Nigerians Will Regret If Jonathan Is Chased Out OfOffice.

The Obanema of Opume Kingdom in Bayelsa State, HRH King A.J. Turner has warned that Nigerians will regret if they reject President Goodluck Jonathan in the February presidential election out of sentiments of his tribe or religion.

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Watchout For The Launch Of N100 Note Tomorrow.

The President will launch the new N100 note tomorrow to commemorate the Centenary celebration of Nigeria. Tune to channels Tv and NTA to watch it live.

Nollywood Actress Omoni Oboli Premieres Her Movie "Being Mrs Elliot" At Aso Rock.

Nollywood actress Omoni Oboli was invited by President Goodluck Jonathan for the private screening of her movie – Being Mrs Elliot.

The screening took place yesterday Thursday 14th August at the Presidential Banquet Hall, State House, Abuja.

At the private affair, the movie star dressed in blue met with other dignitaries including Vice President Namadi Sambo.

AY Makun, Lepacious Bose, Mahmood Ali-Balogun, and Chioma Ude were also invited.

Christmas Message From President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

Dear Compatriots,

I greet and felicitate with you all as we celebrate Christmas once again.

I join our Christian compatriots and all other Nigerians in giving thanks to God Almighty whose Grace and Benevolence has helped our nation to overcome the many challenges it has had since we celebrated Christmas last year.

The annual commemoration of the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ is a most auspicious time for us, as individuals and as a nation, to rededicate ourselves to the virtues and ideals which the Messiah preached and exemplified during his earthly ministry.

Let us all therefore resolve this Christmas to make the ideals of peace, harmony, tolerance, love and goodwill to all even more manifest in our interactions with others.

It remains my sincere belief that no height of human accomplishment is beyond us as a nation, if we can overcome our differences, such as they are, and forge a binding national consensus to put the progress and well-being of the country above all other considerations.

My administration will do all within its powers and abilities to ensure that when representatives of our people assemble for the forthcoming national conference next year, they will have every opportunity and encouragement to make very significant contributions towards forging the required consensus for sustained national peace, unity and progress.

It is also my expectation that the national conference will contribute in no small measure towards the urgent resolution of contentious issues which currently hinder our progress as a nation.

With God Almighty as our Guide, Strength and Enabler, My Administration will continue to implement its Agenda for National Transformation in furtherance of its avowed commitment to improving the living conditions of all Nigerians.

We will continue to count on the prayers, support and cooperation of all patriotic Nigerians in the coming year as we consolidate and build on our achievements in several sectors including national security, power supply, communications, transportation, health and education.

As we commemorate the birth of the Prince of Peace, let us all strive to honour Him more by living our lives as He taught; by making personal sacrifices for the good of others, by showing greater love for others, by being fairer and more honest in our dealings with others, by being ever-willing to forgive those who offend us and by always extending goodwill towards others.

On behalf of myself, my family and the Federal Government, I wish you all very joyful Christmas celebrations, and a peaceful and prosperous 2014.

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan
President,Federal Republic of Nigeria
December 24, 2013

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