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Jonathan won the election, Buhari second and Ribadu third.

Jonathan’s PDP attracted 22,495,187 votes or 58.89
per cent of the votes cast. Buhari’s CPC took 12,214,853 votes or 31.98
per cent and Ribadu’s ACN 2,079,151 votes or 5.41 per cent. Seventeen
other parties shared the remaining 3.72 per cent of the votes. That is
a very sizable margin for winning an election.

There are protests claiming rigging as we have
come to expect over the years of Nigeria’s election and the courts have
shown that they will give the fullest attention to any case of
electoral fraud brought before them. But whichever way you cut it,
these elections have been a significant improvement on previous
elections in Nigeria. What do the independent electoral observers say?

The Commonwealth Observer Group, the European
Union (EU) Election Observation Mission, the African Union (AU) and the
National Democratic Institute (NDI) all acknowledged the vast
improvement and praised the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC)
accordingly.

Alojz Peterle, Head of the EU Observer Group said, “Election day showed a generally peaceful and orderly process.”

The Head of the Commonwealth Observer Group and
former President of Botswana, Festus Mogae, said that problems in the
conduct of the election were negligible and Nigerians should accept the
outcome.

“Though there were minor technical or procedural
imperfections, they were not related to mischief. I think the election
was credible.”

Both the Commonwealth and EU teams noted that
there were shortcomings in the electoral process that will be detailed
in their respective final reports.

And thus, the point that Goodluck Jonathan must
ensure that the process of electoral reform is continued. To that end
he must give Attahiru Jega the mandate for INEC to continue the reform,
give him the resources to complete the job and a timetable to produce
the results. There can be no reason why 2015 elections should not be
the best that has ever been seen in any African nation and that means
no rigging, peaceful, free and fair.

Then there is the task of getting on with the job
of running the country and it is here that President Jonathan has a set
of tasks that most Nigerians would agree need to be addressed. Some,
such as power sector reform and signing off the Petroleum Sector Bill,
are hanging over from the previous term. Others such as setting up a
sovereign wealth fund protected by the constitution, as this column has
previously advocated (On Watch: Oil Opportunity, March 13, 2011) would
be a good way of preventing the excess crude account from being
plundered and preserving a portion of Nigeria’s oil wealth for the
future.

It’s relatively easy to tell the President how to
run the country. Being President and implementing these suggestions is
probably the hardest job in Nigeria. However, this should not deter us
from constructing a list for Mr President’s attention. On my list of
‘things to do’, I have the following:

1. Roll out the power sector reform

2. Sign the Petroleum Industry Bill

3. Review and restructure the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation

4. Set up and constitutionally preserve a Sovereign Wealth Fund

5. Reform the Solid Minerals sector

6. Roll out an economic stimulus package for the north that has agriculture and mineral development as its core

What does your list look like? If you were
President, what would be the top five items on your list of things to
do? Let me have them and I will compile a list of the top 10 items
based on the most popular put forward and we will bring them to the
attention of Mr President.

But whatever the list of jobs to be done, Mr
Jonathan will need a first rate team around him to ensure that there is
delivery on every target that is set. Under Umaru Yar’Adua, some
ministers simply did whatever they wished regardless of presidential
instructions. Jonathan inherited some prima donnas and some rogues.
These people simply must not appear in the new cabinet.

The Petroleum Minister, Diezani Allison-Madueke,
is in the twilight of her political career, although she may not yet
have realised it, and must be replaced if the oil and gas sector is to
be cleaned up. The EFCC will continue to exist in the shadows until
Farida Waziri is replaced with someone whom Nigerians and the
international anti-corruption agencies respect. If the north is to see
some serious attention to economic growth and development of key
infrastructure, then the ministries of agriculture, solid minerals and
water resources require outstanding appointments.

We won’t have to wait long to find out who is to
be trusted with building a future that we all hope will bring sustained
improvement in the quality life of every Nigerian.

onwatch@mail.com