Kalu Okwara

The visit might have been made more imperative, given that the criticism coming on the heels of widespread allegations that he did not only leave Bayelsa State’s treasury empty but also in debt.

As a consequence, he flew into his Izon Kingdom at the weekend in a bid to put the record straight. The vice president was reported to have expressed his willingness to resign if that would make the much eluded development get to Bayelsa State.

Although he accepted that he left some liabilities for his successor, Chief Timipre Sylva, Dr. Jonathan insisted that he did not leave such huge debt portfolio of either N42 billion or N62 billion as was reported in some section of the media.

"I was in government for only 16 months, and I do not want to mention the amount (left). Whether anybody agrees or not, the records are there. In Bayelsa State, it is late for me to mention what I left. It is even difficult to know whether the state is distressed because it would have been difficult to pay salaries but we did. The present governor is doing well, and with the way he is going, he will go better," he was quoted to have told newsmen at Yenogoa.

Remarkably, Governor Sylva has been hesitant at revealing the level of indebtedness that he inherited from his predecessor, insisting that governance is a continuum where projects embarked upon by one administration could be completed by another. He however acknowledged he inherited N20 billion in investment bonds.

Analysts however argue that the criticisms against the vice president may not be for nothing.

According them, his predecessor having laid the example of making his assets and liabilities public, other public officers that share his vision and style of leadership ought to follow suit and the vice president being his closest ally in steering the ship of the nation should be expected to bring his material worth to the public domain.

Although, Dr. Jonathan has argued that he has fulfilled the constitutional requirement of filling the necessary forms with the Code of Conduct Bureau, some analysts believe that the pace set by his boss has made Jonathan’s public declaration of his assets a moral burden.

But the vice president has clarified that he has on five occasions declared his assets as the constitution demands, first in 1999 as deputy governor; second in 2003 after leaving office, third in 2003 again after his reelection as deputy governor; fourth 2005 as governor, and lastly 2007 as vice president.

Those that feel that public declaration of assets would have been better hinge their arguments on the alleged massive corruption that has remained a permanent feature of government institutions in Nigerian.

They contend that since information is still difficult to get from government institutions, public declaration of assets would enable the public to become effective allies to the government’s agencies saddled with the responsibility of fighting corruption.

However, some analysts note that the mounting criticisms against the vice president are coming from his political foes who have been struggling to dislodge his grip from the political machinery of the state. They observe that due to the circumstances that thrust him up as governor, there have been some persistent efforts by some groups to incapacitate him politically.

They recall that it was ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo’s emergency declaration threat that thawed the resoluteness of Jonathan who initially refused to be talked into the removal of his boss, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, in 2005 so as to be sworn in as the governor.

When that was achieved, the question of who would become the governor in 2007 threw up another political intrigues, as those opposed Alamieyeseigha did not want Jonathan to return to the government house.

Eventually when he won the primary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the schism became bigger with Chief Timi Alaibe leading the anti-Jonathan group. However, when Chief Obasanjo anointed him to be the vice president, the equation changed. While his deputy, Chief Peremobowei Ebebi who had played a leading role in the removal of Alamieyeseigha, and Alaibe positioned themselves as possible replacements, Dr. Jonathan went ahead to anoint the present governor who had earlier served as a commissioner. But this did not come easy. Chief Alaibe had to be compensated with his confirmation as the managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), while Chieif Ebebi was placated with the deputy governorship post, an offer he too was said to have seen as a surprise package. He was alleged to have not shown enough loyalty to Jonathan when the latter was the governor.

Some analysts allege that the two attacks on Jonathan soon after his nomination as the running mate to Alhaji Umar Yar’Adua was sponsored by his political opponents. They recall that last April, just a few days to the general elections, militants attacked the Government House at Yenogoa with the objective of abducting him. But luck was on the side of Goodluck Jonathan as neither him nor his family members were hurt. Yet again, on May, a few weeks to their inauguration, his Otuoke house was bombed. They maintain that the reason for those attacks were to portray the vice president as being unwanted by the Niger Delta region.

However, analysts note that beyond all this, vice president Jonathan by accepting to resign if he is seen as the problem of the Niger Delta, has portrayed him as somebody that means well to the people. According to them, accepting to resign from a political office is one of the rarest commodities in Nigeria. They point out that with two months in power, their administration has released two Ijaw sons whose incarcerations were contributory factors to the restiveness of the youths in the Niger Delta that took the worst dimension of kidnapping, even babies in recent time.