President Goodluck Jonathan
• Abuja solidarity rally kicks off October 19
By Chuks Okocha
Apparently, to set the stage for the formal
declaration of his second term bid, President
Goodluck Jonathan and his ruling Peoples
Democratic Party have concluded plans to
hold a rally on October 19 in Abuja. Tagged
a five million-man march, the event is
intended as a showcase for the achievements
of the president’s transformation agenda.
The rally will be followed by a two million-
man march in each of the six geopolitical
zones of the country and three million-man
marches in selected cities.
THISDAY learnt that the rallies, which are,
allegedly, being coordinated by one Chief Obi
Aguocha, a Presidency official, would herald
Jonathan’s formal declaration of his
intention to seek a second term.
The 20 million-man march tagged, “National
Solidarity March,” is being packaged by the
Presidency and PDP to showcase the major
achievements of the president since
February 9, 2010, when he first assumed the
presidential seat as Acting President via the
Doctrine of Necessity approved by the
National Assembly. Jonathan became
substantive president on May 6, 2010 and he
was subsequently sworn in as elected
president on May 29, 2011 after winning the
2011 presidential election.
According to a source in the Presidency, the
purpose of the rallies is, “First, to kick
start his campaigns, where he will tell
Nigerians of his decision to contest for a
second term in office at the 2015
presidential election.
“The national solidarity march is to
showcase the achievements of thepresident,
especially the transformation agenda, and
use the march as a deliberate policy to
activate his support base at the grassroots.
“It is expected that the successful national
solidarity marches in Abuja, the six
geopolitical zones, and selected commercial
cities will make it easier for President
Jonathan to come out gracefully to
announce his second term ambition.
“Also, the national solidarity march is aimed
to demonstrate the unity within the PDP as a
political party and to state categorically
that the PDP is solidly behind the
administration of President Jonathan, and
above all, to showcase the PDP as one united
family in line with the motto and slogan of
the million-man march, which is ‘one party,
one family.’”
The source said all stakeholders in the
Presidency and PDP were expected to
participate in the national solidarity
marches, stressing, “All PDP governors,
ministers, principal officers of the national
and state assemblies of the PDP-controlled
states, and members of the national and
state assemblies and all elected officials of
the party at the local government levels are
expected to participate.
“The national solidarity march would have
taken place before the October 19 date, but
it was moved forward to enable the
reconciliation of the aggrieved governors
and other members to take place.
The date slated for the final reconciliation
is October 7 and thereafter, if nothing
meaningful was reached, then everybody will
go his way.
“By October 7, it is expected that the PDP
would have been one united family, hence
the national solidarity march is for peace
and one indivisible united Nigeria.”
The banners and advertorials for the event,
which are expected to start running from
Monday in some newspapers, bear captions
such as: “The National Solidarity Match: In
Solidarity for Peace, Unity and Indivisibility
of Nigeria. In solidarity for oneness of PDP.
In recognition of the transformation agenda
of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.”
Jonathan’s second term ambition is at the
core of the current divisions within the
ruling party. He had said he would only
announce by next year whether or not he
would contest the 2015 presidential election.
But his political ambition that is supposed to
be secret is in actual fact widely known, as
antecedent events and his body language
continue to betray his excitement at the
idea of seeking another term.
Jonathan’s declaration for the 2011
presidential election had also been masked in
a vague proposal. It had remained an open
secret that he would contest the poll until
September 15, 2010, when he officially
declared his intention to run for the office
of the President in the 2011 election via his
Facebook page.
That seeming haste was seen as an attempt
to prevent former military president Ibrahim
Babangida, who was also due to declare his
presidential ambition, from stealing the
limelight.
Now, amid objections in some quarters to his
participation in the 2015 presidential
election, Jonathan has consistently said he
has the right to contest, without saying
whether or not he would run.

source: http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/jonathan-s-declaration-presidency-pdp-plan-20-million-man-march/159599/

In the event that Jonathan loses in the 2015 presidential election, I hope PDP will not claim that Jonathan had 20 million votes. We all can give a vivid account of what happened in the NGF's election.