Goodluck Jonathan reveals power struggle during Yar’Adua’s illness

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has revealed the political intrigues and power struggles that marked his rise to the presidency following the illness of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2010.

Speaking in an interview with the Rainbow Book Club, Jonathan disclosed that a key presidential aide deliberately withheld a letter from Yar’Adua meant for the National Assembly. The letter, as required by the constitution, would have transferred presidential powers to him as Acting President while Yar’Adua was away on medical treatment.

“The letter was written, but the person it was handed over to refused to submit it to the National Assembly,” Jonathan said. “Yar’Adua became so ill that he had no control of issues. So we had a country where the president was not available and there was no acting president.”

He described the period as extremely tense, with constant fears of a possible coup. Jonathan recounted how a close associate once suggested that he leave the State House for his safety, but he declined. “If anybody wants to kill me, it is better he kills me in the State House so that Nigerians will know,” he said.

Jonathan explained that the vacuum in leadership created a constitutional crisis, as Nigeria had no Commander-in-Chief or Acting President. “No country allows that kind of gap,” he said, citing how other democracies like the United States have clear procedures to prevent such situations.

It was this crisis that led the National Assembly to invoke the Doctrine of Necessity, making him Acting President on February 6, 2010. He emphasized that this move was necessary to prevent the country from descending into chaos.

Jonathan insisted that his calm and non-ambitious approach played a key role in how events unfolded. “If I had shown any ambition to take over, I wouldn’t have gotten the sympathy I had from Nigerians,” he noted. “I never lobbied, I didn’t talk to any member of the National Assembly.”

He was officially sworn in as President on May 6, 2010, a day after the death of President Yar’Adua. Reflecting on the entire experience, Jonathan advised that while ambition is important, it must always be moderated with humility and patience.