Date Published: 08/27/10

Jonathan's Presidential Aspiration in Nigeria's Interest - Campaign Group

Coordinator of the Goodluck Support Group (GSG) in Ekiti State, Rt. Hon. Femi Akinyemi has said that the presidential aspiration of President Goodluck Jonathan was in the best interest of Nigerians, adding that; “we have seen in Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, a President that can bend as much as necessary to carry along the feelings and opinions of Nigerians regardless of their classes or political beliefs.”

He said Nigerians must rise up this time around to elect a president that is acceptable to the generality of the people not the one chosen by a cabal or ethnic group, saying; “leadership must be measured and scored by competence not ethnicity.”

Speaking during the inauguration of expanded Central Working Committee (CWC), Deputy Local Government Coordinators and Secretaries of the group in Ado-Ekiti on Friday, Hon. Akinyemi noted that; “since the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has confirmed that President Jonathan has a right to contest; all hands must be on deck to ensure his victory.”

While justifying the group’s support for the president, Akinyemi, who is also the Chairman of the Ekiti State Local Government Service Commission said; “This man deserves our commendation for his maturity and detachment, the dispassionate way he has been handling the reform of INEC and other areas even as he is determined to make sure that Nigeria and Nigerians never be a scorn of any other country on the issue of free and fair elections.

“We have in Goodluck Jonathan a President who will not use and dump. He will surely bring back moral force, fiscal discipline and ultimately ensure the unfetter delivery of targets. He is a President with honest and clarity of thoughts in redirecting the course of nation building.

“In Jonathan, we have a President that is willing to lead our Country to where it rightly belongs among the comity of nations.”

Speaking further, the Akinyemi listed some of the president’s achievements since he assumed office to include demonstration of continuous commitment to electoral reform as exemplified by the accelerated request and its accelerated approval by the National Assembly of the INEC budget for the preparation of the 2011 general elections, continuous improvement of the economy as attested by a stable exchange rate and the increase in the country’s external reserves, huge respect Nigeria now commands in the international comity of nations due to the massive influence President Jonathan impacts at international fora and continued improvement of the supply of electricity in the country.

On the various groups clamouring for President Jonathan to contest 2011 presidential election, the State Coordinator said the 1,027 are to merge with the GSG.

He implored members of the Expanded Central Working Committee, Deputy Local Govt. coordinators and Secretaries of this group to swing into action by spreading the good news to the nooks and crannies of their immediate environment.

“As you take the mantle of leadership in one way or the other of this winning team GSG, you are all expected to expand the membership at your own end, make it operation catch them all. Let me also remind you that our template is elastic enough to accommodate everybody in driving the Goodluck Jonathan’s vehicle, our door is still open to lovers of good governance and democracy,” he said.