Power brokers from northern Nigeria have begun efforts to draft former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan into the 2027 presidential contest.
The strategy hinges on Jonathan’s eligibility for only one four-year term, as he previously served as president from 2011 to 2015. This initiative is spearheaded by a governor from the North East and a retired general from the North West.
According to a report by Saturday Tribune, these leaders evaluated their options based on the collective interests of the North before deciding to align with the interpretation of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which allows a maximum of eight years, divided into two four-year terms, for a president.
This move is part of a broader effort by influential members of the northern power bloc to thwart President Bola Tinubu’s ambitions for a second term. Countering this initiative is a coalition that includes several governors and prominent politicians advocating for another southern candidate for the presidency. Both factions are united in their opposition to Tinubu’s re-election.
While discussions and consultations are still in the preliminary stages, proponents of the Jonathan-for-2027 campaign have intensified their lobbying efforts among key stakeholders in the Nigerian political landscape, aiming to persuade the former governor of Bayelsa State, who has largely focused on diplomatic endeavors and peace-building initiatives globally.
A source within the group informed the newspaper that the northern leaders working behind the scenes on the Jonathan campaign boast significant political clout across the region, united in their resolve to challenge what they term Tinubu’s mismanagement of the country.
Additionally, to strengthen their campaign, coalition members have reached out across the six geopolitical zones, engaging civil society and pro-democracy organizations, as well as other pressure groups, to garner support for their initiative.
Jonathan, who served as vice president from 2007 to 2010 under Umaru Yar’Adua, is favored by the northern leaders due to his ascension to the presidency in 2011 following a successful election after fulfilling the remainder of Yar’Adua’s term, who passed away after a long illness.
The campaign’s backers assert that, given the current political climate, Jonathan is an appealing candidate with considerable goodwill across the three southern geopolitical zones, positioning him to mobilize significant support from the 17 states within that region.
They also believe that southern backing could enhance the goodwill Jonathan retains in the 19 northern states nearly a decade after his presidency. In August of this year, reports emerged suggesting that certain leaders were exploring the possibility of encouraging Jonathan to run in the 2027 election.
The initiative coincided with the position canvassed by a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) under the Jonathan administration and current governor of Bauchi State, Bala Mohammed, that he would step down the possibility of running for president if Jonathan bowed to pressure to take a fresh shot at the presidency.
After an event organised by a pressure group, Save Africa Initiative (SAI), the governor was quoted as saying that Jonathan had more experience and would do a good job if he had another opportunity to lead the country.
“With regard to your call for me to present myself, I am still contemplating my chances as the leader of the opposition. I know there are good leaders within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), especially my boss, Goodluck Jonathan.
“I have always said that as long as Jonathan is around, I will not present myself for the leadership of this country, unless he decides not to run. If we can persuade him to come forward, I will support him with my blood. Out of modesty, he is still not ready. I hope you will meet him and encourage him to run.
“He will do a better job because he has the experience. We know the prices of things; we know the level of inflation. His leadership recruitment was exemplary. We need leaders like him – young people with energy, foresight, and drive,” Mohammed argued.
Besides, there were attempts by certain individuals and groups to drag the former president into last year’s presidential race, especially under the banner of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
However, on February 4, 2023, the APC denied the widespread rumour that it was planning to field Jonathan as its candidate for the election. This followed reports that some governors from the North were working hard to guarantee the former president the APC ticket, which the party said was a figment of imagination.
Also, Jonathan declared that he was interested in the APC ticket after months of speculations and after a group of his supporters from the North had paid for the nomination forms for him to contest in the APC primary.
But his spokesman, Ikechukwu Eze, said in a statement that Jonathan did not authorise the purchase of the nomination forms for the contest. Jonathan was president between 2010 and 2015 under the PDP, now in the opposition.
“While we appreciate the overwhelming request by a cross section of Nigerians for Dr Jonathan to make himself available for the 2023 presidential election, we wish to state that he has not in any way committed himself to this request.
“We wish to categorically state that Dr Jonathan was not aware of this bid and did not authorise it,” Eze stated.
Interim national committee chairman of the APC then, the governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, during a BBC Hausa Service interview, dismissed insinuations to drag Jonathan into the race for the party’s ticket.
He said: “Those peddling such information are afraid. But for now, there is nothing in APC that has anything to do with the aspiration for 2023.
“Even if someone wants to base assumption on our recent visit to him during his birthday, we were there because of his status as a former President of Nigeria.
“Again, even if there is nothing when we are talking of peaceful coexistence, we must give credit to former President Jonathan on the issue of peace, how he accepted defeat in 2015 and resigned to fate. That has qualified him to be a statesman, and he is now among our fathers.
“Our visit to Jonathan was pronounced because of his status as a former president that could be why some may think there was something beneath it. There are numerous such visits to leaders of PDP, APC, why are others not being mentioned but Jonathan?”
