NAtional Secretary of the Board of Trustees of the National Coalition for Jonathan and Sambo Presidency, NACOJSP, Dr. Benjamin Onoriode Irikefe, in this interview, spoke about the ongoing verification of the various groups rooting for the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan by the Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, Prof. Rufai Ahmed Alkali and chances of President Jonathan in the 2015 general election, among others sundry political issues. Excerpts:

What is your view on the  verification of the non-government organizations rooting for President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election?
As a leader of the largest NGO rooting for President Jonathan for 2015, one can confidently say that Prof. Alkali did an excellent job.
The process was very thorough, transparent and inclusive.

What is the significance of the exercise?
With over 10,000 groups rooting for President Jonathan it is crystal clear that the victory of President Jonathan is already a self fulfilling prophecy come 2015.
I am very much aware that despite the fact that the process has wound down, thousands and thousands of groups are still going for verification.

These groups are from all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory. They are domiciled in the 774 local councils of the country.

With crises in most sectors in Nigeria, critics say President Jonathan does not have a bright chance of being re-elected…
President Jonathan’s victory at the forthcoming election is a foregone conclusion. His victory will be landslide because he has done more than any Nigerian President before him.
Also, the opposition has no credible candidate that can march President Jonathan.

Some stakeholders are of the opinion that the pro-Jonathan groups are jumping the gun?
These thousands of groups rooting for President Jonathan are not political parties, rather they are genuine, freely associating groups angling for Jonathan to be President in 2015.
Nigeria’s constitution guarantees freedom of association.

The opposition contenders do not have genuine followers except hirelings and hangers-on.
If they have true supporters they would have come out in the open to support their preferred candidates the way we are doing for Jonathan.

Do you have any worry about 2015?
I am worried about desperate politicians in the opposition who have been doing all sorts of things openly and covertly to heat up the polity and distort the security landscape.
Frankly, Nigeria will not have any meaningful future after 2015, if President Jonathan does not become President.