Former President Goodluck Jonathan has accused ex–U.S. President Barack Obama of actively contributing to his loss in the 2015 presidential election.
The claim is contained in Jonathan’s new book, My Transition Hours, which is set to be officially released on Tuesday.
According to Jonathan, Obama showed an unusual level of interference during the 2015 polls, describing the former U.S. president’s conduct as “overbearing” and “condescending,” especially in his public address to Nigerians before the election.
Jonathan wrote: “On March 23, 2015, President Obama took the extraordinary step of releasing a video message directly to Nigerians, essentially telling them how to vote.”
He explained that Obama’s call for Nigerians to “open the next chapter” was widely interpreted as subtle support for the opposition, urging voters to elect a new government.
Premium Times, which obtained an advance copy of the book ahead of its launch in Abuja, reported that Jonathan deliberately kept the manuscript confidential to prevent premature leaks.
Jonathan lost the 2015 election to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, becoming the first sitting Nigerian president to be defeated at the polls. He had taken office in 2010 after the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and secured his own four-year mandate in 2011.
Reflecting on Obama’s message, Jonathan said: “The tone was so condescending, as though Nigerians needed to be instructed by Obama on what to do.”
He also criticised Obama for insisting that Nigerians must vote freely without fear, yet showing reluctance to support Nigeria’s efforts to reclaim territories held by Boko Haram ahead of the elections.
Jonathan additionally took aim at former U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, accusing him of dismissing Nigeria’s concerns despite repeated attempts to explain that postponing the election was necessary for national security.
He wrote: “How could the U.S. Secretary of State presume to know what was better for Nigeria than its own government? How could anyone expect us to hold elections when Boko Haram controlled swathes of the North-East and was killing innocent citizens?
“Even our firm commitment to hand over on May 29, 2015, as required by the Constitution, did not reassure them. In Nigeria, no president can extend his tenure by even a single day.”
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