PDP: We lost because GEJ betrayed the north

It is now official: the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it lost its 16-year hold on power because former President Goodluck Jonathan betrayed the north.

Cairo Ojougboh, vice-chairman (south-south) of the PDP, told journalists in Abuja on Friday that if Jonathan had kept to his promise to do only one term in 2011, the party would not have lost the election.

In a report published by THISDAY on Sunday, Ojougboh said even the Christian north turned against Jonathan in the 2015 polls because of the “injustice” of reneging on his promise.

Although he was widely reported to have promised to do only one term in 2011, Jonathan denied entering such a pact and challenged his accusers to provide evidence.

But Ojougboh maintained that Jonathan did make the promise after succeeding President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who had barely spent three years in office when he died.

The PDP leader said: “Jonathan himself said he will do only four years. Emirs, leaders and stakeholders in the country accepted that Jonathan will do only four years so that power can shift to the north. When the time came, a lot of macabre dance started. People started putting pressure here and there, and people started encouraging Jonathan to contest.

“Unfortunately, Jonathan didn’t have the nerve to say, no, I will keep my agreement. So, Jonathan contesting meant that zoning formula had been breached. The north didn’t take kindly to it; they said, no, this is not what we agreed. Even the Christian north that used to be very friendly, especially the north-central, said, we had an agreement.

“Some governors, about five of them, left the party because of that because they saw what was happening. The north now agreed that they must take power back, that it was their turn.”

He said the 2015 election was a battle between the north and the south.

“The south had done more than enough for the time being, for the agreement of 1998/1999. So the north said, look we are going to vote for our son, whether he is good or bad,” he said.

Jonathan lost to President Muhammadu Buhari by 2.57 million votes, having won in 2011 by a difference of 10 million votes.