Lagos , Nigeria ( CNN ) -- Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan officially declared Saturday that he will run in the 2011 elections , lauding his achievements in reforming the oil , banking and electricity sectors . `` I have decided to humbly offer myself as a candidate in the presidential primaries of our party the great PDP ( People 's Democratic Party ) , '' he said . Jonathan 's official declaration comes three days after he informally announced on Facebook that he intended to run in the primaries , which will be held between October 18 and 20 , according PDP spokesman Rufai Alkali . `` In presenting myself for service , I make no pretense that I have a magic wand that will solve all of Nigeria 's problems or that I am the most intelligent Nigerian , '' Jonathan wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday . He took a more confident stance Saturday , announcing that under his presidency , all petrol refineries are now working , the banking sector has been reformed , electricity has been stablized and steps have been taken to fix roads , water , education and food production . He also said he has set in progress free and fair elections . Jonathan 's eligibility was in question until last month , when the People 's Democratic Party said he could run in an open race with other candidates next year . Under Nigerian `` zoning '' rules , power must shift to different regions and ethnic groups every eight years . Jonathan -- who is from the Niger Delta , in the south -- was part of the joint ticket of the late President Umaru Yar'Adua , who was from the north . Yar'Adua 's death in May , after a long illness , upset the order of the zoning . Yar'Adua was elected in 2007 and his southern replacement threatened to halt the north 's turn at holding power . On Friday , four main contenders from the north announced they will put forth a single candidate to challenge Jonathan . CNN 's Christian Purefoy contributed to this report .
President Goodluck Jonathan will run in next month 's primaries . He lauds achievements made under his leadership . A bloc of politicians from the country 's north plan to challenge Jonathan .