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Nigerians, who are
renowned for their strong attachment to the quirks of fate and fortune,
should be forgiven for thinking and expecting so much of Goodluck
Jonathan. This line of thinking has been given an added fillip no doubt
by the acting president’s name which readily conjures optimism and
hopeful expectation especially for a country bracing for its inevitable
date with destiny.

As usual in matters
of this nature, there are those who will seek to cash in (literarily)
on the situation using their privileged positions in society to offer
opinions, which on critical examination will neither provide respite to
the nation in its search for solutions, nor even help the acting
president deliver on the genuine expectations of Nigerians.

By far the most
important and significant challenge facing the nation is the 2011
general elections. It is the one item that all the hopes and
aspirations of the nation rest on and which has the potential of
rubbishing the symbolism of the acting president’s fortuitous rise to
power and the expectations arising there from, if not satisfactorily
handled.

Given the short
time available within the constitutional term limits of the
Yar’Adua/Jonathan tenure, the acting president will need above all else
to summon extraordinary reserves of courage and determination to focus
on the following areas, not necessarily in pecking order:

He must not contest
in the 2011 elections. The first step towards delivering a credible
2011 elections will be for the Acting President Jonathan not to stand
as presidential candidate, painful as that step may be. The acting
president should in taking this step be guided by the fact that owing
to our chequered experience with electioneering in this country, the
2011 election presents possibly the last opportunity for Nigeria to get
it right.

Owing to the
circumstances of his coming to power, Jonathan should aim to etch his
name in history as the man who broke the monkey of election failures in
the country. Such a step will position him to play the role of an
unbiased umpire in the proceedings, for which he will earn the eternal
gratitude of the country, and from that stead a possible overwhelming
vote as president in future elections.

One cannot help
noticing that around the acting president currently is a phalanx of
individuals who are seeking to draw him into their own orbit. It is
true that some of them may have proved useful in resolving the impasse
that followed President Yar’Adua’s illness and subsequent prolonged
absence from office, paving way for the acting president to assume
office. But at some point soon, Jonathan must make a conscious effort
to distance himself from them, especially as he takes on the task of
superintending the 2011 elections.

Not a few of them
have been known to have played active roles in the past in subverting
the course of democracy and the people’s will. Indeed some of them are
closely linked to prominent political actors and may seek to wheel
Acting President Jonathan into favouring their political godsons or
clients in the 2011 elections. If Jonathan must play the role expected
of him in the elections, he must not allow these distractions.

He should be wary
of foreign do gooders. It is gratifying to note that the Americans have
come on strong on the matter of deepening democracy in Nigeria. This
may perhaps be due to the fact one of our kind is presently occupying
the White House. A certain Johnnie Carson who goes by the nice sounding
but possibly redundant title of Assistant Secretary of State for
African Affairs, seems to have been made the focal point.

Following the
prolonged absence of President Yar’Adua, in a statement that sounded
like being more Catholic than the pope, he was heard saying that
America wanted a young and healthy person to take over from the ailing
president.

It is instructive
that the Americans have been swooning all over Acting President
Jonathan since he came on. He was hastily invited to a Nuclear Summit
where American slick was laid on thickly and smoothly. The overall
impression to take from this is that the eternal do gooders that they
are, the Americans would want to encourage and back Goodluck Jonathan
for president in 2011.

How much of this American interest in Nigeria is out of genuine concern for democracy and how much is it for our oil?

How far is this
tied to the strategic game plan to keep China out of the Nigerian
equation seeing how Sudan was lost to the Chinese? Was it not too long
ago that American Intelligence estimates concluded that Nigeria would
be a failed state in the not too distant future?

The acting
president needs to evaluate all these factors in his engagement with
the Americans. He must not allow this American handshake to get to the
elbow.

In conclusion,
Acting President Jonathan stands on the threshold of history and
destiny. All that fate and fortune have been preparing him for in his
political journey will be determined by how he handles the challenges
of the 2011 elections.

The choice is his whether to become a hero or a villain. He needs our support and prayers.

Umar Lukman is Consultant/Publisher Octopus Communications