Nelson A.Osuala[7 October 2016]
President Muhammadu Buhari has shamed all haters of Nigeria's progress especially those he described as prophets of doom , who during the last presidential elections did not only prophesy chaos and bloodshed but hatefully anticipated such evils.
Reflecting on the events of the 2015 presidential election which saw his victory and emergence into the throne of Leadership in Nigeria, Pres. Buhari revealed that it was no doubt the 'commitment to democratic ideals and the patriotic zeal exhibited by the the trio of himself, Goodluck Jonathan and the then INEC Chairman- Prof. Attahiru Jega, that sustained the peace in the Nation and consequently spited the all the enemies of Nigeria, who predicted that the Country would disintegrate by the end of that year.
According to him, the peaceful transition of power of that Presidential election is what has has deepened the practice of democracy in Nigeria and restored the people's lost hope for a credible election in the electoral system of Nigeria.
NHB garnered that the trio of Pres. Buhari, erstwhile President Goodluck Jonathan and former chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega were recipients of the Leadership Awards, an event organized by Leadership Newspapers in at the Congress Hall, Transcop Hilton Hotel, Abuja .
The event which bears the caption “Democracy, Political Transition and the Challenge of Leadership in Africa”, recognized the afore mentioned individuals as “Leadership Persons of the Year.” was presided by Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, as the Chairman of the event.
Our source affirmed that the Man of the Year 2015 Award saw President Muhammadu Buhari as co-recipient with Goodluck Jonathan.The Former INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega was also honoured in their stead.
Buhari who during his acknowledgment for the award, introduced his with a startling statement: “We’ve shamed prophets of doom” was considered to be in high spirits as he further avers:
“Let me hasten to congratulate my joint award winners, my predecessor, His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR and Professor Attahiru Jega, the former Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission, as ‘Leadership Person of the Year.’
“The events of 2015, which the Leadership Newspaper has chosen to bring to the fore today, marked a watershed in the political history of our country.
“Those of us who were participating actors in the elections were led by the higher ideal of the future of our great country and the well being of our people rather than the mere desire of politicians to win elections.
“It is, therefore, our commitment to this ideal, the patriotic zeal of former President Jonathan, the impartiality of the electoral umpire, INEC, and exemplary conduct of the political parties, foreign pressure and other actors that, we collectively disappointed the prophets of doom who had predicted the disintegration of the country after the 2015 general elections.
“Our democracy has been strengthened by the outcome of the 2015 elections as our people now have more faith in the electoral system, in the sense that their votes would count when choosing political leaders at various levels. We, the political class, should build on the experience of the 2015 elections to nurture our democracy.”
commending the effort of the Leadership Newspaper and the media on fostering democratic tenets, he advises thus,
“The media must continually see itself as true partner in the task of nation building and thus act in the spirit of patriotism at all times in the important role of informing the people of the country.
“On our part, our doors are wide open to media inquiries in line with the transparency and anti-corruption stance of our administration,”.
Reacting to Pres.Buhari's speech, the Chairman of the occasion, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar asserts that, it was no doubt the efforts of
Buhari, Jonathan and Jega that sustained the peace we enjoyed from the aftermath of the election.
In his opening remarks, ex- military leader, during his
speech, titled 'Half full, not half empty', informs that,
“Our efforts would have been in vain if President Buhari and former President Jonathan were not willing to cooperate with us and think about Nigeria first or if Prof. Jega had failed to perform his statutory role well.”
Alluding to the above, the Chairman of Leadership newspaper, Mr Sam Nda- Isaiah gave kudos to GEJ and argued that 'it was his wise decision to concede defeat despites pressure not to, that prevented 10,000 deaths in Nigeria!
For him (Mr Isaiah), such honour was well deserved by the three men due to their critical roles in the election.
Nelson A.Osuala
Is a Blogger & the Associate Editor of Negroidhaven.org
(Negriodhaven)
