Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan moved swiftly last night to accept the resolutions passed by the National Assembly empowering him as Acting President, pending the return of ailing President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

The resolutions by the lawmakers were a political solution to the crisis trailing President Yar’Adua’s absence.
Jonathan said he was deeply humbled and honoured by the call to duty.

“I am fully aware of the responsibilities reposed in me, and I want to reassure all Nigerians that this is a sacred trust, which I shall discharge to my fullest abilities,” the Vice-President said in a broadcast to the nation last night to mark his acceptance of the resolution.

He said the circumstances in which he found himself in assuming office as Acting President were “uncommon, sober and reflective”.

Jonathan looked calm in the broadcast that lasted barely five minutes. He called on Nigerians to pray for the quick recovery of President Yar’Adua.

The two houses of the National Assembly passed separate resolutions empowering Jonathan to step in as Acting President pending the return of Yar’Adua.

Although the letters of the resolutions differed from the Senate to the House of Repre-sentatives, the spirit was the same.
The political solution came 78 days after the President left the country for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia without transferring power to his deputy.

Jonathan said: “As we all know, our dear President, His Excellency, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, has been receiving treatment in Saudi Arabia for some time now. Naturally, his absence from the country has generated considerable interest and a heated national debate.

“Today, the National Assembly passed a resolution mandating me to act as President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In following the extant provisions of the 1999 constitution to arrive at this decision, the leadership and members of the National Assembly have shown great courage, statesmanship and patriotism. I salute them all.”

He said the events of the recent past put to the test the nation’s collective resolve as a democratic nation, stating however that he was delighted to note that the country had demonstrated resilience and unity of purpose.

Declaring that there were no winners and no losers in the entire saga, the Acting President said it was time to move on in a more determined manner to tackle the various challenges confronting the nation.

“Our march towards Vision 20-2020 is irreversible. Therefore, we see a need to prioritise on a few of the most critical areas, which continue to plague our effort at engendering meaningful economic growth and development,” he said and listed some of the critical sectors as power, infrastructure, security, generation of employment and business opportunities.
He said the Federal Government would take every step necessary to consolidate the gains of amnesty in the Niger Delta and execute the post-amnesty programme.

On the recent crisis in Jos, Plateau State, Jonathan said government would endeavour to sustain the peace and find a lasting solution to the recurring crisis.
He promised that culprits of the heinous crimes committed in the recent incident would face the full weight of the law.

The Acting President also promised to ensure commitment to good governance, accountability and transparency.
He said the war against corruption would be prosecuted “more robustly”.
The Senate resolution seemed like a follow-up to the one passed about two weeks ago, urging President Yar’Adua to forward a vacation letter to it.

However, it was a volte-face of sort in the House after it had thrown out a motion last Wednesday, seeking to compel the President to transmit to the National Assembly a letter conveying his absence.

The motion to empower Jonathan as acting President was first passed by the Senate.
The upper legislative chamber, will this morning, approve the votes and proceedings containing the resolution to give it effect after which it will be formally transmitted to the Vice-President.

The resolution was consequent upon a motion moved by Senate Leader Teslim Folarin pursuant to Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution as well as Orders 42 and 52 of the Senate Standing Rules (2007 as Amended).
It was seconded by Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu.

The resolution, which was two-pronged, has effectively enabled the Vice-President to begin the transmission of executive communications to the Upper House for legislative action.
The Senate is also on a good footing to receive such communications.

THISDAY gathered that there was a prior discussion of the motion at the closed session held before yesterday’s plenary where it was established that it (motion) enjoyed the support of the majority. The closed session started at 10.20 a.m. and ended about 11.10 a.m.

Specifically, the Upper House resolved: “That the Vice-President, His Excellency Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCON, shall henceforth discharge the functions of the office of the President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federation as Acting President; and
“That the Vice-President shall cease to discharge the functions of the office of the President when the President pursuant to Section 145 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives in writing that he has returned from his medical vacation.”

The resolution, according to the upper legislative house, was based on the BBC broadcast of January 12, 2010 by Yar’Adua in which he said he was receiving medical treatment in Saudi Arabia and when his doctors certify him fit, he would return to the country to assume his duties.

The Senate said by making the broadcast, Yar’Adua had already complied with the provisions of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution requiring him to transmit a vacation letter to the National Assembly to enable the Vice-President to step in as acting President.

The chamber specifically noted in the motion before passing the resolution that Yar’Adua left Nigeria for medical attention in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on November 23, 2009 and that “the entire country, particularly the Senate, prayed for his quick recovery and expected his early return from the said medical vacation”.

It also noted that on January 12, 2010, the President “transmitted to the whole world through the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), a declaration that he is receiving medical treatment in Saudi Arabia and consequently will be unable to discharge the functions of his office until his doctors certify him fit to return to Nigeria to assume his duties”.

The Senate said it noted that “the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives read the President’s declaration transmitted through the BBC and further published in several print media,” adding that it was “satisfied that, in the interest of our nation, Section 145 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 has been complied with by the said declaration”.
But before Ekweremadu could second the motion, Abubakar Garba Lado, (PDP, Katsina South) raised a constitutional point of order, citing Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.

He said that the Senate could not make the Vice-President acting President based on Yar’Adua’s declaration in the broadcast interview with the BBC and advocated for caution in the handling of the issue.

Lado also stated that he would not join the Senate “in doing something that is unconstitutional”. But the Senate President David Mark overruled him and insisted that the BBC interview should be taken as “transmission of a message to us”.
In seconding the motion, Ekweremadu said: “We have found ourselves in a very difficult time and I am happy we are finding solution in the constitution. Even in Section 145, the President did not have to sign a letter. If he had sent a text, it would have sufficed.

“I listened to the BBC interview. Those statements are contained in the transcribed form posted on the internet and published in the newspapers. My constituents believe that Section 145 had been complied with.”
Senators at this point urged Mark to put the prayers to vote.

He said: “I will go to the prayers. But has anybody got a point to make?” The response was: “No, we need the prayers.”
Minimal amendments were effected to the prayers and passed by the Senate.

Speaking after the approval of the resolution, Mark said that the Upper House was guided by the doctrine of necessity which, according to him, required that the House should do what was necessary when faced with a situation not contemplated by the Constitution.

He stated: “Shorn of legalese and technicalities, the intendment and spirit of the Constitution, as far as Section 145 is concerned, is that the legislature should have foolproof and irrefutable evidence that Mr. President is going on vacation, or is otherwise incapable, in the interim, of discharging the functions of his office.
“A rigid and inflexible interpretation will not only stifle the spirit and intendment of the Constitution, but will also affront the doctrine of necessity.

“The doctrine of necessity requires that we do what is necessary when faced with a situation that was not contemplated by the Constitution. And that is precisely what we have done today (yesterday). In doing so, we have as well maintained the sanctity of our Constitution as the ultimate law of the land.

“Viewed from an ordinary reading of Section 145, we came to the conclusion that the President, through his declaration transmitted on the BBC, has furnished this parliament with irrefutable proof that he is on medical vacation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and has therefore complied with the provisions of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.”

The House resolved “that for the peace, order and good government of the Federation and consistent with the judgments of the courts, the Vice-President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, shall assume full presidential powers as acting President, pending the return of President Yar’Adua to office”.

Yesterday’s resolution did not come without some intrigues as the forces opposed to the temporary transfer of power still made frantic efforts to scuttle the move.
Before arriving at the decision, the House of Representatives held two executive sessions to iron out the differences among the opposing forces.

Although a motion sponsored by 77 lawmakers on the issue was listed on the Order Paper, the House jettisoned its normal proceedings and dissolved into a closed door session shortly after the commencement of plenary.
It resumed about 30 minutes later but was forced into another closed door session when it became clear that there were still some dissenting voices.

House Leader Tunde Akogun read out the one-sentence resolution after the second executive session.
It was greeted by cheers and jubilation from the lawmakers many of whom appeared relieved from the tension of the past weeks.
Speaker Dimeji Bankole said the decision was “a milestone in the nation’s history where Nigerians have come to some sort of agreement on how to move our nation forward”.

Bankole said while the controversy raged, some lawyers in the country tried to confuse the nation while the courts even gave some questionable rulings that tended to further compound the issues in contention.

He, however, said that the path the House had chosen by yesterday’s decision was in tune with the wishes of the Nigerian people.
Governors of the 36 states of the Federation later met with the leadership of the House where they hailed the decisi

Ref: Thisday Newspaper

^^^ Dude wake up! Jonathan becoming president is not an ordinary Nigerian man's wishes, it is just the situation forced on us by the corrupt death deserving PDP party.

Shoot2Kill:

^^^ Dude wake up! Jonathan becoming president is not an ordinary Nigerian man's wishes, it is just the situation forced on us by the corrupt death deserving PDP party.

@Shoot2Kill
You are right my dear; but there many ways to it. Though it might not be our wishes but of God and the Situation that have forced the death deserving PDP Party as you've stated and the so called Born to rule Idiots from the North to adhere to the Nigerian Constitution.  The Nigerian God is telling them that everybody is Equal, I only wish they could all learn from this.

Virgo83:

@Shoot2Kill
You are right my dear; but there many ways to it. Though it might be our wishes but of God and the Situationthat have forced the death deserving PDP Party as you've stated and the so called Born to rule Idiots from the North, The Nigerian God is telling them that everybody is Equal, I only wish they could all learn from this.

I hope so my brother, me i am tired. I have given Nigeria an ultimatum in my mind. If things do not change by the time my ultimatum is up i will change my nationality. I am tired of giving my self a heart attack over Nigeria when Nigerians themselves are cheering on corrupt leaders and corrupt political processes.