I was pressed to reject 2015 election result- Jonathan

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has revealed how he was pressured not to accept defeat in the 2015 election.

Jonathan said despite the irregularities that marred that the election including the difficulty he faced before he could vote in his native Otuoke, Bayelsa State home, he conceded defeat principally because it was his belief that his ambition should not lead to loss of lives and property as it was the case in previous elections.

He said contrary to some narratives that members of the international community prevailed on him to accept his defeat and congratulate the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the decision came naturally to him as he was aware a day before the announcement of the results that his party was bound to lose.

The revelations are contained in the former President’s book, “My Transition Hours”, which was presented in Abuja yesterday on his 61st birthday.

The book records the last-minute intrigues and political manoeuvres that defined his last moments with top aides and ministers in the Presidential Villa and the relief he felt after he congratulated President Buhari in a telephone conversation.

Jonathan said he rebuffed the advice by the then Minister of Finance  and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; Attorney-General of the Federation and Justice Minister Mohammed Bello Adoke; Aviation Minister Osita Chidoka, who was a compere at the book launch; and his Senior Special Assistant on Domestic Affairs, Warpamowei Dudafa.

He writes: “They were recommending sundry alternatives, but I was quiet in the midst of their discussions. I hugged my thought, figuring out how to do that which was best for the country. My personal interest was receding rapidly and the interest of Nigeria looming large. I excused myself and left the sitting room. I walked into my study. Even there, my mantra was a strong circle around me, supporting and comforting me.  Let the country survive. Let democracy survive. My political ambition is not worth people being ‘soaked in blood.”

On how and why he called to concede victory to Buhari, he wrote: “More results flowed in and I could not wait anymore. The announcement of the final result could take issues out of all our hands.  It was time for me to take action and bring peace to the nation. I felt I was destined by God at that point in time to inject the peace serum and douse the palpable tension in the country.

“I reached out for his telephone and placed a call through the State House operators at about 4:45pm. A peace I had never felt since my political sojourn descended on me. It showed me where I had been in the past sixteen years and where I was then. I smiled at the thought of what I was about to do. I waited calmly for the person at the end of my call to answer,” Jonathan said.