Nigeria 2015: Oba of Benin declares support for Jonathan

“And also to pray that the opportunity will come for him to continue the good work he is doing in Benin and other parts of South South for at least another term.”

The Oba of Benin, Omo n’Oba n’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo Erediauwa, on Friday in Abuja asked President Goodluck Jonathan to contest for the 2015 Presidential Election. He also prayed for the president’s success at the polls.

Mr. Jonathan is yet to officially declare to run in 2015, although he is constitutionally permitted to run for a second term in office. He is expected to be the ruling Peoples Democratic Party flagbearer in the polls.

Mr. Erediauwa, who made the call when he addressed State House correspondents in Abuja, after a closed-door meeting with Mr. Jonathan, said his kingdom had since embarked on special prayers for the success of the president in next year’s general elections.

The Oba, who was represented by his son, Eheneden Erediauwa, said the kingdom had also embarked on special prayers for the continued survival of Nigeria as a geo-political entity.

“On behalf of my father, who sent me here to convey this message to Mr. President that he has been following the things that have been happening in the country.

”All these disturbances, the distractions Mr. President has been having, that Mr. President being his own Son, he considers Mr. President his Son and he has asked me to present this special message to Mr. President, to tell Mr. President that he is praying for him in the Benin Kingdom.

”He is praying fervently for him to be able to withstand the pressure, to go through the pressure.

“And also to pray that the opportunity will come for him to continue the good work he is doing in Benin and other parts of South South for at least another term.

“I believe that is the commitment we have in this kind of special prayer coming from the Oba of Benin, my father.

Mr. Erediauwa, who expressed the support of people of his kingdom to the Federal Government, urged the President not to be distracted from his good works by those who were bent on causing social discontent in the country.

He said the kingdom would continue to pray for the president to enable his administration overcome all security challenges facing the country.

The monarch, who is one of the most respected traditional rulers in southern Nigeria, said that he would continue offer ‘fatherly advice’ to the President to guide him in facing future challenges.