THE immediate past President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan will be launching his latest book, an autobiography titled ‘My Transition Hours’ on Tuesday, November 20, 2018.

When the book is eventually made available to the public, it will be the first comprehensive first-hand narrative of the happenings in the Nigerian presidency which culminated in Jonathan conceding victory to President Muhammadu Buhari having lost the 2015 presidential election.

Of the books that have been published on the Jonathan presidency by individuals who played significant roles in the administration, three stand out. One is titled “Against The Run of Play: How an incumbent president was defeated in Nigeria“, written by Olusegun Adeniyi, a spokesman to the late former President, Umaru Yar’Adua.

Adeniyi’s 221-page, 12-chapter book told the story of the remote and immediate, human and institutional factors that saw the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ousted from power. It was a major hit when it dropped.

But Jonathan described the book as containing “many distorted claims on the 2015 Presidential election”, and assured that “at the right time, the main characters in the elections including myself will come out with a true account of what transpired”.

The other book with the title, “Facts Versus Fiction: The True Story of the Jonathan Years, Chibok, 2015 and the Conspiracies“, was authored by Reno Omokri, who served as a Special Adviser to Jonathan on New Media.

The book received Jonathan’s endorsement when it was released in June 2017, as the ex-President described it as containing “the whole truth and nothing but the truth about my administration”. The book was rated among the top 20 books of 2017, according to Channels Television.

The third book was written towards the end of 2017, titled “On a Platter of Gold: How Jonathan won and lost Nigeria”. It was written by Bolaji Abdullahi who served in Jonathan’s cabinet as the Minister for Youth Development, and later, Minister for Sports. The book told the story of Jonathan’s meteoric rise from a humble University lecturer to the highest office in the land.

Abdullahi was removed from office in 2014 and followed his “godfather”, Bukola Saraki, to the APC at the height of the politicking that heralded the 2015 general election. Both men, however, are back in the PDP at present.

One thing that can be guaranteed with the forthcoming release of Jonathan’s latest book is that it will throw up issues that will form topics for discussions and analyses leading into the 2019 general election.