In the annals of Nigeria’s political history, few moments stand out as defining turning points for democracy. One such moment occurred on March 31, 2015, exactly ten years ago. That was when then-President Goodluck Jonathan placed a phone call to his rival, Muhammadu Buhari, conceding defeat even before the final results were officially announced. Many believe that single act of statesmanship not only strengthened Nigeria’s fragile democracy but also sent a powerful positive message to the entire African continent.

The build up to that notable event was a tense and charged political atmosphere, one delicately tethered on a tinderbox. It will be recalled that Nigeria’s 2015 presidential election was one of the most fiercely contested in the nation’s history. Ahead of the elections tensions were high, with unprecedented saber-rattling and aggressive blustering across regional and religious divides.

While the results were being collated, supporters of some of the candidates were literally up in arms, threatening fire and brimstone. Fears of post-election violence loomed large.

This was coming on the back of recent experience of many African countries where cases of disputed elections led to chaos, coups, or civil strife.

The long wait for the final tally exacerbated the tension in the land and sparked national debate. Goodluck Jonathan is the genial, gentle, and selfless one. But will he cave in to the pressure from his party’s power mongers or defy the typical ‘win-at-all-costs’ mentality that had plagued African politics for decades?

However, in that tension-soaked moment on the appointed day, against the backdrop of a din of voices and divergent opinions from aides and close associates seated in his expansive living room in the State House, Jonathan quietly disappeared into his study, made peace with himself, his conscience and his God, and placed the historic call.

Instantly, his action calmed tensions across the country, preventing what could have been a bloody conflict between supporters of rival parties. His mantra, “My political ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian,” resonated afresh across the nation and the world.

By his action, Jonathan proved that power is in deed nothing without control, and that real strength lies not with one whose naked ambition drives his nation to ruins but with the visionary leader who gives it all up to save his people.

At the official handover ceremony in the Executive Council Chambers in Aso Rock Villa, an elated Buhari had told the outgoing President, on the eve of his swearing in, that “since that famous telephone call you made, you have changed the course of Nigeria’s political history.” He went ahead to praise Jonathan for his selflessness and deep sense of patriotism, noting that his decision to concede defeat saved countless lives that would have been lost in post-election violence.

Nobody, perhaps, understood what fire was averted more than Buhari, especially after the grisly threat from his flank ahead of the polling that ‘both the baboon and the dog would all be soaked in blood.’ It is to the glory of God that it did not happen. That was because Jonathan served as the agent God deployed to save the country from disaster.



https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/04/jonathan-remembering-watershed-moment-for-nigerias-democracy/