By Inalegwu Shaibu, Abuja
Deputy Minority Whip of the Senate, Senator Olorunimbe Mamora, AC Lagos East, has asked Nigerians to vote wisely in deciding who becomes the President in the 2011 elections, even as he said that President Goodluck Jonathan’s declaration to contest is in fulfillment of his constitutional rights.

Senator Mamora who spoke to Vanguard in telephone interview said that Nigerians must seize President Jonathan’s declaration as an opportunity to assess his performance whether it merits being elected as President in 2011.

He said, “He is fulfilling his constitutional rights as a Nigerian to aspire to any position and I think nobody can stop him from doing so. We all know that it just a matter of time. It is about when and not if he will declare.

To some of us, it is not strange. It has been long expected so I am not surprise at all, the speculation has been there all along, if he is coming, let him do so because he has the right to aspire.

“It is left for the generality of Nigerians to decide what the level of his performance has been. It is not for an individual to make some assessment because it will be within the ambit of his opinion.

“But now that he has thrown his hat into the ring, it is left for Nigerians to decide. Directly or indirectly, what he is asking for is to be judge by his performance so far whether to be elected or not.

So it is left for Nigerians to decide if his performance in the office as President in the last couple of months has justified his being elected in 2011 as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”