Goodluck Jonathan congratulates Buhari

Buhari polled 15,424,921 to defeat incumbent President Goodluck
Jonathan, who scored 12,853,162 votes.
As of Monday when INEC began the collation and announcement of the
results at the National Collation Centre for the President Election
located at the International Conference Centre, in Abuja, Buhari had
won 10 states with 8,520, 436 votes. Jonathan recorded victory in
eight states and the Federal Capital Territory with 6,488,210 votes.
At the time the collation resumed and progressed on Tuesday, signs
that the Katsina State-born former Head of State, who had previously
taken a shot at the Presidency thrice, would win the election became
clearer.
The APC candidate had contested presidential elections in 2003, 2007
and 2011, but lost to the Peoples Democratic Party candidates
(Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Yar'Adua and Jonathan).
Before Jega drew the curtains on the exercise, Jonathan called Buhari
on the telephone to congratulate him.
Going by the result announced by INEC, Buhari won five out of the six
states in the South-West while Jonathan emerged victorious in one.
At the end of the exercise on Wednesday morning, Buhari won 21 states
and Jonathan 15 plus the FCT.
Lagos State, the APC presidential candidate got 792,460 votes, while
his PDP counterpart garnered 632,327 votes.
Buhari polled 308,290 votes in Ogun State while Jonathan had 207,950 .
In Oyo State, the former Head of State got 528,620 and the President
received 303,376 votes.
The president-elect also won Osun State with 383,603 to defeat
Jonathan, who had 249,929. Jonathan lost Ondo, a PDP state, to the
president-elect. Buhari polled 299,889 votes, while the President got
251,368 .
But the President won in Ekiti State, where he got 176,466 votes to
defeat Buhari, who received 120,331.
The incoming president emerged victorious in all the seven states in
the North-West. In Sokoto State, he had 671,926 votes; Zamfara,
612,202; Kano, 1,903,999; and Jigawa, 885,988.
In Katsina, his home state, Buhari got 1,345,441; 1,127,760 in
Kaduna and 567,883 in Kebbi.
Jonathan secured 152,199 votes in Sokoto; 144,833 in Zamfara;
215,779 in Kano; 142,904 in Jigawa; 98,937 in Katsina; 100,972 in
Kebbi and 484,085 in Kaduna.
Buhari defeated Jonathan in five of the six states in the North-East,
where he polled 473,543 votes in Borno; 374,701 in Adamawa; 931,598 in
Bauchi; 361,245 in Gombe and 446,265 in Yobe.
The incoming president, however, lost Taraba by scoring 261,326 votes
as against the President's 310,800 .
Jonathan received 25,640 votes in Borno; 251,664 in Adamawa; 86,085 in
Bauchi; 25,526 in Yobe; and 96,873 in Gombe.
Also, Buhari won four out of the six states in the North-Central. In
Benue State, he polled 373,961 votes; 264,851 in Kogi; 302,146 in
Kwara and 657,678 votes in Niger.
He was defeated in Plateau State, where he had 429,140 votes and
Nasarawa, where he narrowly lost to Jonathan, who secured 273,460
votes while he received 236,838 votes.
In the zone, the outgoing president also won in Plateau State, where
he had 549,615 votes.
But he lost the four remaining states, including Kogi, where he
garnered 149,987 votes; Kwara, 132,602 votes; Niger, 149, 222 votes
and Benue, 303,737 votes.
Buhari was unable to defeat Jonathan in the latter's strongholds of
South-South and South-East.
Also In the South-South, Jonathan polled 953,304 votes in Akwa Ibom,
while Buhari received 58,411 votes. In Bayelsa State, the President
got 361,209 votes while the president-elect had 5,194 votes.
Delta State, Jonathan garnered 1,211,405 votes while the incoming
President received 48,910 votes. The President got 286,869 votes in
Edo State and Buhari had 208,469 votes.
Cross River State, the outgoing President had 414,863 votes, while
the incoming President received 28,368 votes. Jonathan got 1,487,075
votes in Rivers State to defeat Buhari, who received 69,238 votes.
The APC Candidate also suffered defeat in the five South-East states.
In Anambra, Jonathan polled 660,762 votes, while the President- elect
got 17, 926 votes.
Abia State, the outgoing President had 368,303 votes while the APC
presidential candidate received 13,394 votes.
Elect president secured 19,518 votes in Ebonyi State where Jonathan
polled 323, 653 votes. In Enugu State, the President had 553,003
votes, while the President-elect received 14,157 votes.
Soldiers become unfriendly
Soldiers, who were guarding the National Collation Centre, suddenly
became hostile when the last result from Borno State was about to be
released.
After the announcement of the Delta State result at 6pm, Jega had said
the last result would be made known at 8pm.
Jonathan congratulates Buhari
At about 5.15pm on Tuesday when the last results were being read,
Jonathan congratulated Buhari for his victory.
A former Head of State, Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar, who made this known,
commended the President for his sportsmanship.
Abubakar spoke with State House correspondents shortly after leading
members of the National Peace Committee for the 2015 General Elections
to a closed-door meeting with Jonathan at the Presidential Villa,
Abuja.
While saying that they were in the Villa to thank Jonathan for his
statesmanship, the former military leader urged all stakeholders to
emulate his (Jonathan) sportsmanship.
He said, "We are here to ensure peace is maintained at this moment. We
thank Nigerians and all members of the international community who
came to support us during the elections.
"The elections have been very peaceful despite the hitches here and
there. At the end of the elections, at the counting, there are a lot
of upheavals that have happened but thankfully they have been
contained.
"We were at the middle of a meeting with the international observers
to try to see how we can still water the tension down when gladly I
called Gen. Buhari that we are going to see him, he told me that Mr.
President has called him at about 5:15 p.m. and congratulated him and
conceded defeat.
"We were spellbound and the reason we have come here is to thank
President Jonathan for this statesmanship.
"In the history of Nigeria, I think this is the first time where a
contestant has called his rival to congratulate him and through this
point, President Jonathan maintained a point that the blood of
Nigerians is not worth his Presidency and by his action he has proved
that.
"He has proved that he is a man of his word because during our
interaction on this peace committee, he has always maintained that he
is going to accept the result of the election whichever way it is
done. And he has proved this."
Abubakar urged all Nigerians to join hands and assist the President in
peaceful handing over.
He said all politicians, those who are celebrating and those who are
sorrowing, should give peace a chance.
The former Head of State said, "In any contest, there is always going
to be a winner and President Jonathan has accepted that he lost and we
want to thank him on behalf of Nigerians.
"I want to thank President Jonathan for being the statesman that he
is, he has proved that he is a statesman and he has the love of this
country in his heart. So Nigerians should please help him to ensure
this is real.
Any Nigerian who is aggrieved, the electoral law has procedures
seeking redress, so if anybody has any grievance, he should apply
through the law.
"I appeal again to our youths, to everybody to please give peace a
chance and accept that the chief contestant himself has accepted."
President Jonathan also met with the leadership of the National Peace
Committee for the 2015 General Elections led by a former Head of
State, Gen. Abdusalami Abdusalami .
Some dignitaries at the meeting included the Primate of the Church of
Nigeria(Anglican Communion), Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh; the Catholic
Archbishop of Abuja, Onayeikan; and a former President of the Nigerian
Bar Association, Priscilla Kuye.
A source learnt that while the announcement of the results was
ongoing, some ministers and presidential aides trooped into the Villa
to consult with Jonathan when it became clear to them that the
election had been won and lost.
The chiefs led by the national chairman, Adamu Mu'azu, were also said
to have met with the President on the outcome of the election.
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