A statement issued by its Vice President (VP) for Africa and Middle East, Mr. OC. Vince which was made available to journalists in Abuja on Friday, said it used both the ‘monkey survey’ and ‘political risk index’ to forecast the Nigerian election which culminated in projecting a Jonathan’s win. He however explained that the firm had no partisan interest in the outcome of the nationwide survey, adding that the election would be left for Nigerians to decide.The statement said: “Many people around the world, including politics and business leaders are focusing on Nigeria to see how the process of democracy is managed.” The statement added that PDP appeared to be facing its toughest political challenge in 16 years and hoped the efforts the firm had made by organizing an independent survey would help deepen and strengthen democracy in Nigeria and enable the different contending parties manage their final push toward 2015.
On the credibility of the test, the statement hinted: “We randomly conducted a nationwide opinion poll focusing on the six geo-political regions of Nigeria: North east, North west, North central, South west, South east and South -South. The sampled population were asked three questions centering on human rights, the economy and security. “Between General Buhari and President Goodluck Jonathan, who would best protect the fundamental human rights of Nigerians? While APC’s Buhari scored 30 per cent Jonathan scored 70 per cent.”
‘Between the elections holding in February 14th as previously scheduled and March 28th as postponed which date do you feel safer to participate in the presidential election? 35 per cent thinks the election should have been held on February 14 as scheduled while 65 per cent thinks the March 28 new date is a safer and more secured date’. Accordingly, they believe that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was now more prepared having issued more PVCs and as wells as tested the card readers. The lapses noticed can now be corrected before the polls. On who would best grow the economy between Buhari and Jonathan; APC’s Buhari scored 42 per cent while PDP President Jonathan scored 58 per cent.
Vince said its conclusion were reached in respect of the question ‘who would best protect your fundamental human rights’ by taking cognizance of the antecedents and past records of the two candidates, adding, that the past and current utterances of the candidates and how Nigerians of diverse gender, ethnicity, religion and social status perceive both candidates and how effectively both candidates has been marketed to the voting population.
The statement also averred that majority of the respondent agreed that Dr. Jonathan is highly tolerant and possesses the right temperament as a democratic president. The respondents also cited the signing of the FoI Act by the President and his high tolerance of criticism as a rare quality for an African leader, it however criticized Jonathan’s PR team for not doing enough to market his achievements and personal qualities which they said surpassed that of any former Nigerian leader in recent history.
The statement added: “We viewed Dr. Jonathan as a favorite to win reelection based also on a number of factors even though the election will still be difficult to call. Our expectation of a Jonathan’s win was predicated also on the fact that the postponement of the election may have helped him comeback decisively into the race”.
Source: New Telegraph
