LAGOS (Reuters) – Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday declared his intention to run in elections next January, using an announcement on the networking site Facebook to steal the thunder from a rival’s campaign launch.
A statement on Jonathan’s Facebook page confirmed his decision to stand as thousands of people convened in the capital Abuja to hear former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida announce his candidacy for the top job.
Jonathan’s election bid is controversial because of an agreement in the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) that power should rotate between the mostly Muslim north and the predominantly Christian south every two terms.
Jonathan, who is from the Niger Delta in the south, inherited the presidency when late northern president Umaru Yar’Adua died this year during his first term. Some powerbrokers within the PDP say the next leader must be a northerner.
“In presenting myself for service, I make no pretence that I have a magic wand that will solve all of Nigeria’s problems, or that I am the most intelligent Nigerian,” the statement on Jonathan’s Facebook page said.
“What I do promise is this — If I am elected President in 2011, I will make a covenant with you the Nigerian people to always do right by you, to tell you the truth at all times, to carry you along and most importantly to listen to you.”
Jonathan plans to make a formal declaration at a rally on Saturday on his intention to run for the leadership of Africa’s most populous nation, the statement said.
A presidency spokesman confirmed the page was genuine, while Information Minister Dora Akunyili said Jonathan had also told the cabinet of his intention to run.
The unconventional method of announcing his ambition was in marked contrast to Babangida’s traditional rally in Abuja’s Eagle Square, the parade ground which has hosted national ceremonies since the capital moved from Lagos two decades ago.
“To the betterment of our country, the advancement of humanity and greater glory of the Almighty, I Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida … hereby formally declare my candidacy,” he said, to rapturous chanting of his initials “IBB”.
Babangida, a northerner who seized power in the OPEC member in August 1985 and ruled for nearly eight years, pledged to ensure double-digit growth in sub-Saharan Africa’s second biggest economy and said he would only seek one four-year term.
