President meets peace committee, congratulates Buhari

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday met with the National Peace Committee on 2015 elections. The meeting took place at the New Banquet Hall, State House Abuja.

Leading the delegation was the Chairman and former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, former Chief of General Staff (CGS), Commodore Ebitu Ukiwe, former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Priscilla Kuye, Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Primate of the Anglican Communion, Nicholas Okoh, former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Prof. Ameze Goubadia, prominent businessman, Aliko Dangote, and Special Adviser to the President on Inter-party Matters, Sen. Ben Obi.

Besides, some of Jonathan’s ministers were seen around the area, even though they were not part of the meeting. They include the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN); Minister of Aviation, Osita Chidoka, his Agriculture counterpart, Akinwumi Adesina, and Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Speaking to State House correspondents, Gen. Abubakar thanked the President for conceding defeat to Buhari, describing the feat as the first in the history of Nigeria’s political history, where a contestant and a sitting President had conceded such defeat to his opponent.

He confirmed that Jonathan, indeed, congratulated his main challenger, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, conceding defeat at 5.15 p.m.   Before Abubakar’s pronouncement, however, a minister in Jonathan’s cabinet, who pleaded anonymity, had earlier confirmed to correspondents that the President had spoken to Gen. Buhari congratulating him .

Abubakar, therefore, urged the President’s supporters not to heat up the polity but follow the President’s sterling leadership quality and his commitment to the unity and oneness of the country.

Abubakar said they were in the State House to ensure peace is maintained at this moment and thanked Nigerians and the international community that have come to show support for the elections.
 
He was happy that the election had been peaceful, despite the initial logistics challenges. He said: “I am happy that the elections have been very peaceful, despite the hitches here and there. At the end of the elections, at the counting, there are a lot of upheavals that have happened, but thankfully they have been contained.

‘‘We were at the middle of a meeting with the international observers to try to see how we can still water the tension down, when gladly I called Gen. Buhari that we are going to see him, he told me that Mr. President has called him at about 5:15 p.m. and congratulated him and conceded defeat.

“We were spell-bound and the reason and why we have come here is to thank President Jonathan for this statesmanship. In the history of Nigeria, I think this is the first time a contestant has called his rival to congratulate him.”

According to him, “President Jonathan had always maintained a point that his presidency is not worth the blood of Nigerians; and, by his action, he has proved that. He has proved that he is a man of his word, because, during our interaction on this peace committee, he has always maintained that he is going to accept the result of the elections, whichever way it goes and he has proved this.

“And I think we, Nigerians (all of us) need to join hands in making sure we assist him in the peaceful handing over. And I will appeal to all politicians — those who are celebrating and those who are sorrowing — to please give peace a chance, to be moderate.

In any contest, there is always going to be a winner and President Jonathan has accepted that he lost and we want to thank him.
 
“On behalf of Nigerians, I want to thank President Jonathan for being the statesman that he is; he has proved that he is a statesman, and he has the love of this country in his heart. So, Nigerians should please help him to ensure this is real.”

Abubakar said the country’s electoral law has procedures for seeking redress; “so, if anybody has any grievance, the person should apply through the law.”

He specifically appealed to youths against being used by any politician to destabilise the country. His words: “I appeal again to our youths, to give peace a chance and accept that the chief contestant himself has accepted. So, nobody should go and raise any eyebrow and cause any destabilisation of this country.”