I hope to win, says Jonathan after voting

President Goodluck Jonathan has said he was hopeful of winning the presidential election.

He spoke in Otuoke after casting his vote. His wife Dame Patience Jonathan voted moments after he did.

The president said he voted for himself and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidates for the National Assembly.

They voted in Unit 39, Ward 13 in Otuoke, Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa

State.

Ask whether he would win, Jonathan said: “I am very hopeful. Very, very hopeful.”

President Jonathan expressed confidence that the elections would be free and fair despite the hitches.

He dismissed rumours of violence and bomb explosion in Enugu.

He said: “You can see that it’s peaceful everywhere. I believe and I’m convinced that the elections will be free and fair and extreme credible.”

He said the gunfire in Gombe was not related to election, adding that the shooting was between soldiers and insurgents attempting to escape the Sambisa forest.

The president refused to blame the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the hitches encountered in some areas, saying everyone could still vote with the alternative arrangements.

“We appreciate the patience of those who are yet to vote. They should sympathise with INEC. It wants to use the card readers to make sure that our electoral process is credible and acceptable by international observers.

“This is the first time we are voting with the card readers. There have been some issues in some units, but we should bear with them. I believe that at the end of the day we all will be happy,” Jonathan said.



Asked about his assessment of the election based on information available to him, he said: “I have information but it is not everything that I can say. INEC has the responsibility to talk about their functions. There are complaints about PVCs and card readers not working.

“At the same time INEC has directed that in polling units where the card readers are not working, they should take the manual option, so I believe all Nigerians who want to vote will definitely vote, and that is the good news.

“The only thing is that some people probably must have stayed there longer than necessary. But I still plead with them that even if they spend 24 hours for the sake of this country, please they should bear with us, they should do it,” he said.

On INEC, Jonathan said the government is one, and the commission cannot be held solely responsible for the hitches.

He said: “I don’t blame anyone. But as a nation, we have different departments of government that handle responsibilities. The issue of election is INEC’s exclusive responsibility, and nobody will speak for them.

“That’s what I’m saying, that even if I have some information, I cannot speak for INEC. Jega is the person that can speak for INEC. I speak for the Federal Government.”

On whether the success of the use of the card reader issues were limited to some states, he said: “It may be a coincidence, but I don’t think it’s limited to PDP-controlled states. I think it’s a national issue.”

Dismissing report of bombing in Enugu, the president said: “I’m not aware of violence in Enugu State. What we heard about Enugu is that there was a bomb blast, but when I called the governor, he said no, there was no bomb blast, but that there were some vehicles that came from the North and somebody suspected that something must be an IED (Improvised Explosive Device). The person raised an alarm and it was checked and it was not even an IED.

“There was no blast in Enugu. I even heard there was a blast in Uyo. I called the governor; he said there was no blast.

“What happened in northern part of Gombe was that – of course you know the war against terrorists is still going on, voting or no voting, because we must take over Sambisa forest.

“Some of these insurgents are running away from that part, and they were intercepted by some soldiers and there was a kind of crossfire between soldiers and terrorists that had nothing to do with the elections.”

Asked who he voted for, he said: “I voted for myself, and I voted for PDP in all the other elections.”