The final result had not even been announced and everyone is tripping over everyone to congratulate GEJ on his magnanimity, respect for democratic norms, whatever, in conceding defeat in the just concluded presidential election. Not surprisingly the truth is quite different from this emerging narrative: GEJ have not actually conceded. Doubt it? Just read again what is being bandied around as his concession statement. The best you can find there is that he had sent Buhari best wishes! In fact in that same statement GEJ reserved his right to fight on by his reference to provisions of the Constitution and electoral laws. And of course, his party, the PDP, had formally informed us that they are headed to the tribunals.
The emerging narrative here is to paint Jonathan as our own Richard Nixon (before he became the Watergate villain) who lost the 1960 presidential election to John Kennedy in what many (at least in the Republican Party) believed was nothing short of day light robbery, largely orchestrated by Mayor Daley’s Chicago machine. Many urged Nixon to challenge the final result but he finally decided against that saying that America was too great to have a contested presidency.
This same statesman-like attitude is already being claimed for Jonathan by all Nigerians, and indeed the entire world, relieved that the election has not descended into the chaos most feared. I have no doubt that after he has exhausted all legal and illegal designs to stick on to power, he will claim this as his lasting legacy, and a people so used to crooks, fiends and brigands as their leaders, and ever so willing to forgive and forget anything, will readily wrap his name in this saintly halo.

But let’s get the records straight for the history books. Jonathan has not conceded. Far from that, the finality of all of these has not fully dawned on him. Has anyone pondered the significance of the fact that GEJ watched the returns of the presidential election not with his partisan team and close circle (his wife, the Ijaw cliché, Fayose, FFK, etc) but with Abdusalam and his so-called peace committee. Has anyone pondered what GEJ’s reaction would have been if he had been with his crowd at that time?
I have been wondering what the Peace Committee told or promised GEJ to convince him that all was not lost – obviously his look was that of someone in an alternative universe and not taking in what was happening before him. He looked drugged!!. Whatever they could have promised him, I have to admit we owe them a bit of gratitude for helping ease the tensions of the moment.
But while we thank Abdusalam and rub our hands in imagined or real gratitude to GEJ, we should not get over our selves here. Even in his most clueless state GEJ definitely understand the relations and tensions between legitimacy and power. He understands that for all his limp swagger (and the empty threats of his chorus) it was not power but electoral legitimacy (no matter how tenuous) that underpins his position. He knew that the moment he lost an election (no matter what he thinks of it) the power he supposedly holds in his hands avail him none. So please, let’s make the landing easier for him and help heal the divide a closely contested (and the dirtiest since FFK’s dad was strutting around the old Wild West) election created, but let’s not exaggerate one person’s powers. The power belongs to the people.

what drug does this guy use?

Richard Nixon ko Richard mofe damijo ni



how did u escape again?

So what should we do now?