29 July 2019
A Nigerian social commentator, Simon Utsu has given insight into his reservation concerning how former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan ran the country especially in respect of citing projects in the south southern and south eastern geopolitical zones of the country where he hails from.
He said this Sunday on his social media account where he said Jonathan misused a 'golden opportunity'.
His words, 'As Head of State and Government, former President Jonathan had the golden opportunity to make his region and the southeast the Abu Dhabi and Dubai of sub saharan Africa respectively but he blew it. He chose to focus on Northern Nigeria & southwest Nigeria —the same regions that ganged up to oust him.
'When I point out one or two of his flaws or put in a good word concerning his past political rivals, some of his Ijaw brethren become very angry. What the southeast needs most is a functional seaport. GEJ should have at least brought the Onitsha port to life in addition to upgrading another coastal state's port (Cross River's or Akwa Ibom's) to the level of Lagos's. Within just a week of being made acting president, VP Osinbajo issued a presidential order, that granted the Apapa port in Lagos some special privileges. He has also opened a dry port in his Ogun homestate.
'Cross River never got much from him but gave him maximum support. Jonathan was giving us chaff ministerial portfolios like Tourism and state Education but under the current dispensation, Cross River has benefited more than any other southern state in terms of federal appointees who in turn (some of them) have attracted Federal projects to the state.
'I once heard reliably that during GEJ's time, Obasanjo rang my former governor, Imoke and queried him about the bad state of the road leading to his farm in the state. Liyel in turn explained that the bad portion was a Federal road and that he had reached out to GEJ several times in that regard to no avail. Obj then rang up GEJ and asked him why he had refused to listen to Imoke's plea and repair the road to his (Obj's) farm in my state. Jonathan promised he would do something about it immediately. But not before ringing Imoke and lampooning him for daring to report to Obj that it was his fault.
'Under GEJ, Cross River all but lost her status as an oil producing state after losing her remaining oil wells to Akwa Ibom… the Ogoja – Calabar road nkor? As a Cross Riverian, I have a number of genuine reasons be angry with Jonathan but I'll always chose to remember him for his good side & good deeds. But no one should feel that as a Niger-Deltan, it's my civic responsibility to be his diehard supporter or an enemy to his enemies', Utsu concluded.
