I stumbled on this on Washington Times. It's quite an interesting read.

[size=15pt]Goodluck Jonathan’s Last Fight?[/size]

There are several forces at play that make the new timeline for Nigerian elections a one-time chance for a decisive strike against Boko Haram. In addition to Boko Haram, Nigerian elections have a potential for violence themselves. With or without a domestic Islamist, insurgency a delay of elections is interpreted by the Muslim north and the All Progressive Congress party of presidential candidate Muhammadou Buhari as an extra-constitutional attempt to prolong power. That was one rational against the postponement of elections until the decision was made to do so on Saturday, a week before the scheduled elections.

Apart from a rational, the calculus for Nigerian incumbent President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan might well have been to keep the election date, avoid the appearance of prolonging his term in office, and allow the disenfranchisement caused by Boko Haram to work in his favor. Such a scenario would allow for Candidate Buhari’s camp to reject the election results and resort to violence.

Mr. Buhari was believed to be behind the 2011 violence in the north when a Muslim rejection of a southern Christian’s election led to more than 300 deaths and thousands displaced. With Boko Haram in the mix, the collective downsides over-shadowed appearances of good protocol by keeping the original date. The U.S. and the international community had urged as much.

The presidential and parliamentary elections will now take place on March 28. Elections for governors and state legislators will take place on Feb. 28. Until now it has been ostensible that Mr. Jonathan had little interest in confronting Boko Haram and the international attention has put him in an awkward spotlight. If Mr. Jonathan’s administration fails to seize this window to take the reigns of the Nigerian military and significantly disable Boko Haram, it will confirm that he does not see himself as the president of all of Nigeria but only the south. The strength of former military dictator Buhari’s campaign is that his supporters believe he can achieve security and defeat Boko Haram where Mr. Jonathan has failed. The political moment between now and the Feb. 28 regional elections is likely the last calm moment for Mr. Jonathan to galvanize against Boko Haram before Mr. Buhari’s political leverage reaches a critical mass. If Mr. Jonathan makes it through the elections without taking the upper hand against Boko Haram, he will face greater challenges with an even weaker mandate.

At such a crossroad, it’s important to have a good measure of who Mr. Buhari is. The fundamental political difference between Mr. Buhari’s group and those who would become Boko Haram back in 2000 was a factional split over who could best purify the Muslim north of political corruption and enforce the best interpretation of shariah law. In the year 2000, Mr. Buhari’s political colleagues were debating whether they could accept a moderate enforcement of shariah law in the North.

“I can die for the cause of Islam. If necessary, we are prepared to fight another civil war. We cannot be blackmailed into killing Sharia” - Muhammadou Buhari, 2000 Freedom House.



Of course Mr. Buhari will play the role of a moderate now. Not enough eyelids were raised by U.S Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit so close to the election last month. It was then fair to speculate that Mr. Kerry was offering assurances of cooperation in exchange for assurances of a peaceful election. Despite the administration’s recent lectures on state visits near election time that concerned Bibi Netanyahu of Israel and Angela Merkel of German, the State Department played tone-def to the legitimacy and perceived U.S. approval given to Mr. Buhari in his meeting with Mr. Kerry. The public acknowledgement of the meeting in diplomatic currency was indeed a clear act of favoritism.

Thanks to the reporting of Adam Kredo, we now know that it was something more nefarious. David Axelrod is Mr. Buhari’s lobbyist and in this administration you can buy the presidency of Africa’s most populous nation. According to the Washington Free Beacon report, Mr. Axelrod’s firm, AKPD, was employed by Mr. Buhari’s APC party as recently as December 2014. The timing of Mr. Kerry’s visit the next month within in that context puts a shorter lifespan on the Jonathan presidency.

President Jonathan must now fight without firm footing against Boko Haram, his political opponents, U.S. diplomats and their lobbyists. He has about a month to make something happen.

Nicholas Hanlon is Chief Africa Analyst at the Center for Security Policy.

Source >> http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/feb/9/frank-gaffney-nigeria-goodluck-jonathans-last-figh/#ixzz3Rk8Mhb2L

Dear President Goodluck Jonathan,
the LORD will be your stronghold, no matter the forces around you...

May Christ be ur strength. Amen

The president should remain committed to the 28 March election date and focus less on these negativity.
Suddenly, every international tabloid now have correspondents who, overnight, became experts in Nigeria affairs.

This explains the postponement, GEJ is beleaguered in the midst of so many opponents and feels like a mouse in a corner, surrounded by hungry cats.

He was meant to be Nigeria's best president but he squandered too much of our collective goodwill away with lies and mediocre leadership.

If only the outcomes of mistakes could be weighed before they're made maybe GEJ would not be in this position.

The whole world is now focused on Mr. President watching him closely, analyzing his every moves.

To the US and Co, while we appreciate your analysis please don't bud into our business.

#GEJIamSorry

#IHaveDecided to join #TeamChange

Sai GMB/PYO

No matter what, GEJ will make it through. It is in the power of your PVC!!!!

God bless Nigeria!!!

God bless GEJ!!!

Revelations everyday

This is why this r.etard buhari has been fighting to be president. To subtly introduce sharia through the back door! Gej till whenever!

Goodluck Gen. Muhammadu Buhari!

Come March 28.

Gej goodbye to aso rock,u waste d first opportunity of south south,may God help u in ur next endeavor.

saintopus:
No matter what, GEJ will make it through. It is in the power of your PVC!!!!

God bless Nigeria!!!

God bless GEJ!!!

Even the PVC means P ower to V ote C hange

I wonder if pple read dis article before commenting anyway all d evil forces will not prevail
Gej till 2019
God is our strenght

President jonathan has stolen billions of dollars. His loss of power will expose the endemic corruption in his government of gregarious proportions. and knowing the nature of GMB to fight corruption as his cardinal point in the agenda, jonaboy will do almost anything to hold on for another 4 years to escape the hang man, even going as far as sabotaging nigerian's effort at ending the insurgency in the north east, because the north east is APC's enclave. Shortchanging the electorates will be a good kill for gej especially in the north east. This is beyond logical reasoning and this is the truth whether you like it or not, jonathan is on the run.

Akpan107:
Dear President Goodluck Jonathan,
the LORD will be your stronghold, no matter the forces around you...

May Christ be ur strength. Amen

Pls leave christ outta this. When the bastard was removing & siphoning the Fuel Subsidy Funds e.t.c, you didn't remember christ.

Besides, this Otueke drunk is a freaking ritualist who drinks & baths with the blood of a day year old baby every 2weeks.

Don't bore us with the usual Jesus&God mumbo-jumbo.

#GEJMustGo!

Boko hari

of course this is His last fight....He will end Boko Haram in this fight and will win the presidency this very fight....so its His last
GEJ till....:.....

Akpan107:
Dear President Goodluck Jonathan,
the LORD will be your stronghold, no matter the forces around you...

May Christ be ur strength. Amen

Mr. Akpan are you supporting Goodluck because you mean well for this country or because he is your self acclaimed brother?

GOODLUCK JONATHAN WOULD STILL WIN

This is coup against our democracy.

But believe it'll be like a film for them after 28th of March

MrIncrediible:

Mr. Akpan are you supporting Goodluck because you mean well for this country or because he is your self acclaimed brother?

It was said in Our Holy Book that we should pray for our Leaders, as Christian, i will never fail to do that.

Zoharariel:


Pls leave christ outta this. When the bastard was removing & siphoning the Fuel Subsidy Funds e.t.c, you didn't remember christ.

Besides, this Otueke drunk is a freaking ritualist who drinks & baths with the blood of a day year old baby every 2weeks.

Don't bore us with the usual Jesus&God mumbo-jumbo.

#GEJMustGo!

As a Christian, Christ our strength. He said we should call HIM in time of trouble... So go and rest!
GEJ remain the President untill 2019

emiye:
Even the PVC means P ower to V ote C hange

PVC is Permanent Voters Card!!!!!

jmoore:


PVC is Permanent Voters Card!!!!!

.... or Poly Vinyl Chloride, but at the moment it is P ower to V ote C hange

emiye:
.... or Poly Vinyl Chloride, but at the moment it is P ower to V ote C hange

Good to bad is change too, bad to worse is still change. Continue....

Goodluck Jonathan is not a bad President. His problem is that he does not understand the weight of the problem he is shouldering.

He came to power on the shoulder of the masses of this country. He has honest intentions to work for the masses, but, he has failed to connect with the same masses. Why? Inorder to enjoy a smooth reign in office, he compromised on so many expectations from the masses that elected him. He is seen as aligning with the same oppressors that the masses fought to dethrone by enthroning him. Why did he compromise? Because the masses rejected him!

When this administration removed subsidy on fuel, it was with the purest intentions to curb the corruption in that sector and put 'our ' money back into 'our' pockets. It was GEJ's first coup against the monsters feeding fat on our collective wealth. Total removal of subsidy would have stopped fraud in the oil sector and encouraged the building of local refineries in this country. That, to a large extent would have brought down the price of petroleum products and made it available to the masses, thereby curbing scarcity.

The masses did not understand the policy and revolted. The opposition and oil marketers moved in and hijacked the protests. The same oil marketers the President wanted to save the people from their greed rallied behind the people. The President misread the power of the masses by thinking that the oil marketers and the opposition sponsored the Protest(this is why he made the famous speech of "drinking bottle- water and eating at protests". He, out of fear, aligned with the same dark forces and this marked the beginning of the end for him. He became disconnected with the masses and allowed the corporate world and corrupt politicians to have their ways and say.

He might pay for these mistakes on the 28th of March and when he gets back to Otuoke, he'd be confronted with another problem. His people would want to know what he did for them. To me, this is his greatest failure. Coming from the part of the country that lay the golden egg and yet live in neglect; how has he been able to address the injustice the Nigeria state prepetrate against the people of the Niger-delta by taking their oil to 'share' the proceeds and leave the area and people in penury and want?

GEJ is a gonner. He squandered his opportunity and the enormous goodwill he enjoyed in 2011 - especially in south west which happens to be the 2nd largest voting block in the country. Whatever the outcome of the military onslaught against boko haram, it will surely count against GEJ. The way I see it, there are only two possible outcome:

1: The military fail to effectively defuse boko haram. This will confirm the skepticism of Nigerians wondering how the military can tame boko haram in six weeks what they have not been able to do in six years. This will finally confirm that the GEJ administration is either not competent or at least not sincere about ending boko haram and in fact may be complicit -especially giving the fact that no high profile arrest of sponsors have been made after 5 years. War is an expensive venture and BH definitely has some big money bags as financiers. The DSS and other intelligence operatives in the country (all under the presidency) have not been able to pin any of the sponsors, but the DSS was super quick to detect the Hacking video tutorials which the APC was allegedly planning to use to hack into INEC database.

2: The military succeeds in checkmating boko haram. If this happen, it then mean that this administration deliberately left boko haram to kill tens of thousands of Nigerians for the past 5 years! It means the Nigerian army has the capacity and resources (both human and material) to eliminate boko haram in six weeks yet the terrorists were left to go on killing spree for 5 years unchecked -deliberately!
All the excuses put forward will amount to mere smoke screen deliberately put forward to justify the lack of decisive action against the terrorist group. Excuses like "the Nigerian Army is not trained to tackle insurgency", "the army is not well equipped compared to boko haram sophisticated hardwares" will all fall flat because the same Nigerian army that couldn't defeat BH for the past 5 years as a result of all these silly excuses are now able to perform the "miracle" in 6 weeks.

Now I know some people will say the NA is able to do it in 6 weeks because of the support from other countries. But how do we explain several reports (both confirmed and unconfirmed) that the civilian JTF had on a number of occasions repelled BH attacks (without the support of other countries) while the Nigerian army fled?

The way I see it is that its a lose-lose situation for GEJ. I am sure APC is just using this "cool-off" time to put some facts together to pounce on the opportunity presented by whatever the outcome is.