As moves to draft former President Goodluck Jonathan into the 2027 presidential race gather momentum, Nigerians have expressed divergent views over the plot.

While some Nigerians, including members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the opposition coalition platform, African Democratic Congress (ADC), see the move as one that would enrich the country’s democratic experiment, others warned the former president to learn from the “betrayal” of 2015 and resist the temptation of being dragged into the ring. Yet, there are a few who see the whole move as speculative and which should not deserve the type of attention being given to it.

Leading the pack of Nigerians who are of the view that the whole idea is speculative is the National Secretary of the ruling All Progressives Party (APC), Senator Ajibola Basiru, who asked which platform is the former President going to use, adding that “has he declared himself? I don’t have any reaction to speculations, please. “

The move to draft Jonathan into the race, Saturday Sun gathered, has no doubt left many chieftains of the PDP, especially those on the side of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, bewildered.

They are concerned with how to deal with their endorsement of President Bola Tinubu for a second term. Sources revealed that PDP chieftains who had gone ahead to endorse Tinubu had thought the party would not have the courage to zone the presidential ticket to the South.

However, with the decision of the party to zone the ticket to the South, they now appear to be in a dilemma, as they currently do not have any alibi to hold on to, to justify their continued support for Tinubu’s presidential bid in 2027.

Nothing wrong if Jonathan runs again

National Publicity Secretary of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Prof. Tukur Muhammad-Baba, noted that it would be an interesting development to see former President Goodluck Jonathan contest for the presidency in 2027.

He said the political ground is fertile for Jonathan to contest since he has the constitutional rights to do so.

“Well, it is certainly an interesting development. It is also within the constitutional rights of the former President. The political scene is also fertile for any and all presidential and other hopefuls.

“How the ensuing campaign will turn out, what he will promise the electorate, the persuasive appeals of such promises, etc., all remain to be seen.

“So, for now, potential voters wait in anticipation, hopefully of robust, issue-based, clean political campaigns, devoid of blackmail, intimidation, or violence of any sorts,” the Scribe said.

On his part, the National Publicity Secretary of ADC, Mr. Bolaji Abdullahi, said the Otuoke-born political heavyweight’s return would enrich the country’s democracy.

“It is a good development. Former President Goodluck Jonathan has shown that he remains in good shape politically, and his return will not be strange.

“It is consistent with global and continental trends, such as the return of Donald Trump to the political arena in the United States.

“Jonathan earned a place in Nigeria’s democratic history by conceding defeat and handing over after an election he lost in 2015.

“That singular act has strengthened our democracy. Therefore, it is within his right to return, and we believe his participation will further enrich the democratic process,” Abdullahi said.

Also speaking in the same vein, Dr. Sebastian Agbinda, a lecturer at the Department of Political Science, Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi (MOAUM), noted that Jonathan’s return bid is in response to the power shift arrangement in the country.

He said: “The idea of zoning is minoritism and it started in Benue. Benue has been at the forefront of this movement. The idea is that after Buhari, the presidency should have moved to the south and moving to the south where should it be harboured?

“It shouldn’t have been in the South-West but in the South where the presidency hasn’t been harboured before and that should be Igbo land.

“Though Jonathan had a taste of it, in an oblique manner not directly. The only time the Igbo had a taste of presidency was during Ekwueme.

” I thought he (Jonathan) should understand that under the zoning arrangement, he could run just like an Igbo man can run. But he doesn’t have a chance because of the crisis in the PDP.

“The idea that Jonathan handed over power after his defeat has enlarged his acceptability across the country. Some called it weakness but then, he has been marketed across the world and in Nigeria as a statesman. Very few Africans have seen any leader concede to defeat in the manner he did, the humility, these are not the attributes of the regular Nigerian or African politician.

“So personally, his credentials are not fouled, they are elevated but the political instrument, the political party he wants to utilise will not birth, it will not deliver a presidency now. I hardly see how anybody can defeat Tinubu.

“The Tinubu’s people have the PDP by the balls and they would do everything to poison the PDP political waters through the fracturing. If I were Jonathan, I will not run even though the zoning arrangement suits him because he is unlikely to navigate through all these. The love that Nigerians have for him cannot be transferred into electoral victory for the PDP.”

On his part, retired Comptroller of Prisons, and President -General Mzough U Tiv, (MUT), Worldwide, Chief Iorbee Ihagh, said: “If he wants to contest for the presidency, I think he has the right to do It and if Nigerians feel that he did a good job, I’m sure they will vote him, after all it looks like he was cheated in the 2015 election.

“I have respect for Jonathan because he didn’t make trouble. If he did, Nigeria would have been in trouble. When he contested with Buhari, people said he was cheated but he kept quiet. I think we should give him credit for that.

“So to me he is free to run if he wishes to contest for presidency, after all, the presidency is in the South and it will remain in the South for the next four years. It is from there that it will come to the Middle Belt in 2031.”

Jafar Sani Bello, the 2023 PDP gubernatorial candidate in Kano State, said it would be a very good development for Nigeria’s politics if Jonathan considers joining the presidential race in 2027.

“It will be a good omen in three directions. One, it will be a plus for Nigeria’s democracy because it will show that somebody can operate at the presidential level and people will have misgivings towards his policies, his administration and whatsoever and get him out of office by way of election and later on realise that he meant well for the nation and the country and offers himself up for the same office and vote him back to continue the good work he had started.

“Secondly, It will be a vindication on his own part that he meant well for the nation in terms of security, in terms of the economy, in terms of the image of the country thus he was misunderstood and thirdly, it would be a good omen because it will bring about a reversal of so many anti- people policies of the current APC administration.

Therefore, I don’t see any reason he should have a second thought about contesting again for the presidency, bearing in mind that it would be all up for grab. This country has been grossly and severely mismanaged in terms of security, in terms of economy in terms of corruption and nepotism. This nation has never had it this bad when it comes to nepotism in terms of appointments in the nation’s security architecture and the nation’s financial and economic sectors. Even in terms of development projects and empowerment programmes, this administration has no shame in ensuring uneven parity across other regions of the country. Finally, I call, urge, and impress on the former president, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Azikwe Jonathan, to run for president, come 2027. In Sha Allah, triumph is the outcome, ” Bello added.

‘Jonathan never left PDP’

On their part, some leaders of the opposition PDP have said that the former president has never left the party.

A national official of the party, Timothy Osadolor, said that he was not aware that the former president ever left the PDP. He noted that Jonathan, like every other member of the party, is free to contest the 2027 presidential poll on the opposition party’s platform if he so desires.

Osadolor said: “Former President Goodluck Jonathan to the best of my knowledge, is a card carrying member of the PDP. He may not have been attending high profile meetings of the party. But that is not to say that he is not a bonafide member.

“And like other members of the party, President Jonathan is eminently qualified to vie to for the presidency come 2027.Again, I don’t want the PDP or Nigerians to think that President Jonathan is the only option before the PDP.

“We have the likes of Governor Seyi Makinde and a few others, who are eminently qualified and have track record of service delivery. For President Goodluck Jonathan, there are voices urging him to run.”

Nonetheless, the PDP leader, said state apparatus must be neutral, so that nobody is victimised, because he is nursing a presidential aspiration.

The chairman of the Imo State chapter of the PDP, Austin Nwachukwu, said he was not aware that the former president has left the party.

However, Nwachukwu, who is also the chairman of the Conference of PDP state chairmen, said it is up former President Jonathan to decide if he wants to contest for any office he is qualified for.

“Former President Goodluck Jonathan never left PDP for all I know. If he chooses to run for any office that he is qualified to run for, so be it. It is up to him. Nobody can cajole him to run or force him . It is him that can tell himself if he can stand the rigours again,” he stated.

But former Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Dr. Mike Omeri, wants Jonathan to speak up on the whole move.

Omeri, who served in the Jonathan’s administration, said Jonathan remains a leader with a conscience who understands Nigeria’s political landscape and has the qualities to govern again.

He recalled that Jonathan’s administration was marked by inclusivity, citing his own appointment as an example. “During Jonathan’s time, there was inclusivity. Someone like me, who was in one village in Keana, Nasarawa, was picked and given appointments. That tells you the kind of leader he is.”

He further said “It is his right to contest as the law permits two terms but he did only one,” he said, adding that if Jonathan declares his intention, he would personally support him.

Also speaking in an interview, Dr. Idrisu Abdulquadiri, a Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon at Nasarawa State Hospital, Lafia, said Jonathan’s economic policies are now being appreciated.

“The economy was better during Jonathan, and many now believe he was on the right track. At the time, people did not understand his policies, which were gradually growing into favourable momentum, but political decisions made them vote him out. Today, Nigerians are realising he was the best for the country,” he said.

Abdulquadiri acknowledged that the present administration may argue it needs more time to fix the economy but stressed that hardship has worsened.

He maintained that Jonathan has the right to contest and suggested that his candidacy might even serve as a bridge for political alliances.

A former acting chairman of the Ijaw National Congress, Engr. Charles Ambaiowei, counters, saying divine steps will return Jonathan to power.

According to him, everything happening in Nigeria is working in favour of Jonathan’s return to Aso Rock.

Ambaiowei, an associate of the former president, disclosed in an interview that he has had a dream twice recently where former First Lady, Patience Jonathan, returned to Aso Rock as First Lady.

According to him, two previous dreams about Jonathan becoming governor after Alamiyeseigha’s predicament and also becoming President after the death of Yar’Adua came to pass the way he saw them in the dream.

Ambaiowei argued that all those who conspired against Jonathan in 2015 to get him out of power have realised their mistake and some have apologised, while others will also do so in due course.

He noted that all the policies the opposition rallied against when Jonathan was in power are now being implemented without consultation.

Ambaiowei said other countries have also returned former Presidents to power to get them out of difficult situations, like Nigeria has found itself.

“In France, Charles De Galue was brought back; John Mahama of Ghana is another example. If Nigerians ask the hard question of who is best suited to take us out of the woods, I can tell you that it cannot be anybody but Jonathan. Even the Northerners themselves know. As President, Jonathan favoured the North more.”

Also speaking, a former Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr Osom Makbere, said Jonathan is eminently and legally qualified to run for the Presidency again.

Makbere, a lawyer, said Jonathan, by virtue of the provisions of section 137(b), CFRN, 1999 (As Amended), is eminently qualified, and all attempts to misinterpret the required sections are a distractive ploy of the ruling party.

Deputy National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) Dr. Ayo Olorunfemi, said that former President Goodluck Jonathan is being lobbied to join the Labour Party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He said Jonathan’s return would change the tone and tune of Nigerian political landscape between now and 2027.

He, however, clarified that Labour Party was considering Jonathan more as an individual than as a member of the PDP. “We are also lobbying him to come to the Labour Party,” he stated.

He should think twice before running

Ahmed Abubakar, lectures at the Department of Political Science, Bayero University, Kano. He said he is not against Jonathan re-contesting the presidential election/

“We had a similar experience in Kano when Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso re- contested and won the governorship election. We have seen it play out in the United States when Donald Trump won the presidential election again t democracy. All of these will add beauty and class to our democratic maturation.

“Having said this, I’ m rather worried for the former President. I want him to retain his good name. He has ruled for six years in all. And one will think that that is sufficient enough for him not to be tempted to come and risk trading off the reputation he built for himself in the years after his loss.

“Is Jonathan now ready to engage in the things, the murky political ways he once denounced and distanced himself from? Is he thinking that th” presidential contest has become saner over the years? If for anything, it has become crazier since his last contest.

“Another question bordering me is the kind of rivalry before him. Is the incumbent a push over? I think he is a no- nonsense fighter. He is not the sort of incumbent that will go down without a knockout fight?

“But what party is Jonathan likely to pitch with? All the things I have read indicate that he will join the PDP. Let’s analyse the PDP. Here is a party that Is’not doing well at the moment and is desperately searching for a force that can help it revive itself. Jonathan must note that the PDP today is a much-depleted political party than it was in 2015. That means a lot more work for them to outshine the ADC and the opportunity.

“On the whole, I pray for the emergence of any government that will take us to where we were in 2015 and I pray that God will guide us to such a leader who will hear the cries of a common man. If that leader is Jonathan, then let it be.”

However, a Public Affairs analyst and Professor of History, Adetunji Ogunyemi, described former president Goodluck Jonathan as a very risky candidate for any political party to field.

He posited that Jonathan might be disqualified having taken the oath of office twice, especially if the subsisting judgment of the Federal High Court is challenged and upturned.

He said: “It is left for the former president Jonathan to determine the appropriateness of the time, the legality of it is the issue.

“Whether Section 135 (2), as currently altered, which says, if you have taken oath of office twice into that office, the office of president, whether you can still go to contest.

“That newly altered section disqualifies anyone who may wish to contest. However, there is a subsisting judgment by the Federal High Court In Bayelsa, I think in 2023, where it was held that that section could not have a retrospective effect on Jonathan, having been altered only after Jonathan had taken that oath of office.

“Now, the question is, if that case finally becomes litigious or if it becomes litigated, whether Jonathan will still be able to qualify because the Federal High Court decision is not final, even though it is still the subsisting judgment.

“So, I think it will be very good for anyone who wishes the Nigerian judicial system well to try that in the court and to see whether it can go. Otherwise, it will be very injurious to the interest of any political party to field the candidate whose likelihood of being disqualified at the critical moment is very high.

“The likelihood is high, and it is in the interest of the political party who fields such a candidate that I am weary of and it will not be too good for democracy because by the time he is finally disqualified, that is if he is disqualified, then it may be too late to replace him.

“Jonathan therefore becomes a very risky candidate for any party that fields him,” Ogunyemi said.

Some Gombe residents, including Umar Gurama, a retired civil servant, also believe that Jonathan is constitutionally and politically qualified to seek another term, but warned that doing so could come at a steep cost to his hard-earned reputation.

“Jonathan has every right to contest in 2027 because he has not exhausted his tenure as president. As a Nigerian, he is eminently qualified. He is a good presidential material who struck a balance between the South and the North. Everyone would have confidence in him,” Gurama said.

According to him, Jonathan’s candidacy, if it happens, would resonate with many Nigerians who still recall his conciliatory politics and pan-Nigerian posture.

However, Gurama noted that Jonathan’s legacy is already well-secured after conceding defeat to former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, a decision that earned him global recognition.

“By conceding defeat, whether rightly or wrongly, he was celebrated all over the world. He became an ambassador of peace and democracy, both nationally and internationally. His return this time could tarnish or even ruin that reputation he built for himself,” Gurama cautioned.

“He and his family must be comfortable where they are now, probably even better than when he was in office. The retirement platform he built for himself is very reputable. Returning to politics may destroy that,” Gurama warned, while acknowledging that the ultimate decision rests with Jonathan.

Dr Babayayo Sule, a Nigerian political scholar and lecturer at the National University of Lesotho, sees talk about Jonathan’s return to the ballot in 2027 as little more than political chess.

“My take is that it is just speculation, an attempt to further cripple the opposition against the ruling APC,” he said.

According to him, Jonathan may face pressure to contest, but he doubts it will materialise. “At the end of the day, he won’t do it because of many reasons. APC is banking on having more opposition candidates so that the votes are split, that was what happened in 2023,” Sule argued.

The Publicity Secretary of the PDP in Kwara, Olusola Olusegun Adewara, said Jonathan is currently not an active member of the party and that discussions about his possible return to the presidential race were solely his personal prerogative, especially now that the party’s presidential ticket has been zoned to the South.

“Dr Goodluck Jonathan, to me, is not an active member of the party or any other party that I know of, as he has stayed away from party activities for quite some time. Within the PDP, discussions about him re-contesting are not the issue, but how we will return to power in 2027. That said, if he decides to return to the party, he will be welcomed. The PDP is large enough to accommodate everyone.

“It is important to note that our party has already zoned the 2027 presidential ticket to the South. I believe this is why some Nigerians or groups are advocating for Jonathan to join the race. But this clamour is, in fact, an indictment of the APC administration. If the APC were performing well, there would be no basis for anyone to call for the return of Jonathan whom Nigerians voted against in 2015.”

On his part, a Kwara-based public affairs analyst and good governance advocate, Comrade Ishowo Olanrewaju, said while Jonathan has every constitutional right to vie for the presidency again, his return would reflect poorly on Nigeria’s governance trajectory.

He said: “Former President Goodluck Jonathan has every constitutional right to contest the 2027 presidential election if he so wishes. However, I do not support the idea of his return. The clamour for Jonathan’s comeback only reflects how low our governance standards have sunk.

“This was the same Jonathan whom many Nigerians once described as ‘clueless’ and whose administration was widely castigated for numerous failures. For people to now be yearning for his return shows that, as a nation, we are not truly moving forward, governance wise.”

Also, speaking in the same vein, the candidate for the recent House of Representatives for Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency by-election in Kaduna State on the platform of the National Rescue Movement (NRM) party, Rev. Emmanuel Olorunmagba has said that former President Goodluck Jonathan should bury the ambition of running for the presidential race in 2027.

“Former president Goodluck Jonathan has played his part very well in Nigeria politics and I don’t think coming back to contest again will be a good idea.

“We all know how they waged political war against him ahead of the 2015 general election. They employed terrible propaganda against him, turning gullible Nigerians against him. The same people took over the country, crashed the economy, destroyed everything in Nigeria and the entire system has been nose-diving.

“Then what will Goodluck Jonathan come back to do when they have taken Nigeria several years back? If Jonathan becomes the president of Nigeria today, the expectations will be so high and the parameters Nigerians will want to use to measure the success of his administration will be too high, not minding the level of damage already done to the country. And if he can’t measure up, they will say he failed this time around. And those politicians who destroyed the entire system will definitely use it to justify their abysmal failure.

“Therefore, let a new person, younger and with good intentions and vision take over Nigeria. Only then will the expectations of Nigeria will gradually improve until Nigeria can regain her initial pride among the comity of Nations and truly assume her status as the real giant of Africa.

“In conclusion, former president Goodluck Jonathan is already an elder statesman that has contributed his quota. He should remain so and support a younger candidate to play his own part in rescuing Nigeria”. Rev. Olorunmagba said. (Sunday Sun)