President Jonathan launches book about Facebook
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The president of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has launched his new book “ MY FRIEND AND I, conversations on policy and governance” and his campaign initiative “ BRING BACK THE BOOK” at the EKO hotel and suites, Lagos, Nigeria. The book is a documentation of the President’s interactions with young Nigerians on the networking site, Facebook.
Mr. Jonathan, who claimed to have over 350,000 “friends” on his Facebook page, said, “I decided to publish because I wanted to promote a reading culture and accountable governance.” He added that the direct feedback from Nigerians over the last four months on Facebook has been an “invaluable” one in formulating government’s policy. “Leadership is a two-way traffic. I am leading because I have a mandate,” he said.
In addition to the president’s claim, US Facebook guru, Joe Trippl, said there are two million Nigerians on Facebook, out of the 400 million worldwide. He said that while the Obama campaign made use of Facebook to great effect, Nigeria is the first example of the networking site usage in governance.
The event was attended by, Dimeji Bankole, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Diezani Allison-Madueke, Petroleum Minister and Labaran Maku, Minister of Information and Communication among others.
Explaining the rationale for the launch of the BRING BACK THE BOOK INITIATIVE, the president said it is aimed at placing the country on the platform of irreversible progress.
According to Mr. Jonathan, the decision to embark on the campaign came after consultations and “a consensus that we require a nation-wide campaign to bring back the book reading culture”. He, however, suggested that the focus be on the children and the youth, following the adage of ‘catch them young’.
Other dignitaries at the event included Ken Wiwa Jr. and Toyosi Akerele of the Rise Initiative. There were musical performances by some of Nigeria’s biggest pop stars, including Tuface Idibia, P-Square and D’Banj. The president’s book was reviewed by social commentator and columnist, Reuben Abati of the Guardian newspaper, Nigeria 