Jonathan to run for president again in
February 2014-10-29 17:33 Abuja - President Goodluck Jonathan's
office confirmed on Wednesday that he
will seek a second term in office in
elections set for February. Jonathan, who had been widely expected
to run again, will collect a nomination
form on Thursday to be the ruling party
candidate in the presidential vote, his
spokesman said. "President Jonathan thanks all Nigerians,
members of the PDP, friends, associates
who in sincere appreciation of the
achievements of the administration in
the last four years have been urging him
to seek a second term in office," presidential spokesman Reuben Abati
said in a statement emailed to press. The announcement will be seen as a
mere formality by the Nigerian political
class since Jonathan had already been
adopted as sole candidate by the board
of the ruling People's Democratic Party
(PDP). Also read: Jonathan urged to contest election in 2015 Jonathan's government has been beset
by criticism over its inability to end an
insurgency by Boko Haram Islamists, for
his response to their abduction of more
than 200 schoolgirls still being held six
months later, and for a raft of oil corruption scandals. However, the president still appears to
be in a strong position, partly because
there is no clear alternative, but also
because Nigerian elections tend to be
fought more on vast patronage than on
policy, which gives an encumbent in this oil-rich state an advantage. The battle lines between Jonathan and
whoever wins the nomination for the
opposition All Progressives Congress
(APC) are increasingly being drawn, with
several defections both ways over the
past year. Nigeria's lower house speaker and fourth
most powerful person, Aminu Tambuwal,
defected to the opposition coalition on
Tuesday, boosting its bid to unseat
Jonathan. The top two contenders for the APC
presidential ticket next year are former
military ruler Muhammadu Buhari and
recently defected vice president Atiku
Abubakar. Both are Muslim northerners,
while Jonathan is a Christian southerner, which will inevitably add an ethnic and
sectarian dimension to the contest. In 2011 Buhari's defeat against Jonathan
triggered three days of bloodshed that
left 800 dead and 65,000 displaced. The APC's failure to agree on a leader has
diminished its support among Nigeria's
elite and made it look weaker as the
polls approach. Several lawmakers defected to the APC
last December as it gained momentum,
but since then a number of powerful
figures have swung back to the
president's camp. - Reuters