So President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan(GEJ) has defeated the loud-mouthed but equally strong Abubakar Atiku. Hardly surprising,you may say.But that was just the easiest path towards re-election for our dearest GEJ. The rough path lies ahead.He has little or no time to convince us he has the mental toughness of Buhari,the bluntness of Ribadu,and the efficiency of Shekarau.Nothing suggests he cannot rise up to the challenge anyway.Afterall it takes mental toughness to avoid getting carried away against Atiku,bluntness to take on his opponents and efficiency to garner such support.But one thing worries me.
I would love our dear GEJ to have the guts to caution Governors who fail to do well.I can never forget in a hurry how he and others praised the Abia State Governor T.A.Orji for being the best thing to happen to Abia,when in actual fact the reverse is nothing but the case.In case he is unaware,not a few Abians hold grudge against him for that.Nobody says he shouldn't have friends,but what signifies your principle and dignity is when you are able to speak the truth,not minding whose ox is gored.Our dear GEJ never showed that in Abia,and we are the worse for it.Funny enough,while his best buddy seems not to be working,his worst adversary,or so it seems,happens to be one of the best performing Governors.
Chibuike Amaechi,in my opinion,has been the best performing governor this dispensation(apologies to the likes of Akwa-Ibom's Akpabio and Lagos' Fashola)yet he seems to be in constant run-in with GEJ.While the Odili effect cannot be dismissed,Amaechi's altercation with the first lady Patience Jonathan and GEJ's right hand man(or,you could say,boy) Governor T.A.Orji come to mind.If he isn't aware,GEJ should now know Amaechi is well loved by people as a visionary leader and therefore should be the type of individual he should bring closer to himself,rather than people like that Governor we know too well.
Aside these,GEJ seems to be the best thing to happen to Nigerians at the moment,so we could do worse than giving him our votes.He is cool-headed,ready to listen and approachable.He now has the chance to write his name in gold,and be revered forever or make a mess of himself and join the teeming list of disappointments.The ball is in his court,but the road ahead,surely is rough.