As opposition hatches plots and schemes about how to oust President Bola Tinubu from office, the former president has become the toast of the opposition parties as they search for a formidable candidate to oust the incumbent.
With the politicking and gamesmanship ahead of the 2027 presidential election entering high gear, events in the political space are unfolding at a pace many observers, commentators and analysts are finding it hard to keep up with. As we race towards 2027 and political actors and entities manœuvre and meander through the treacherous and perilous political landscape, one name that has returned to public discourse is Goodluck Jonathan. As opposition hatches plots and schemes about how to oust President Bola Tinubu from office, the former president has become the toast of the opposition parties as they search for a formidable candidate to oust the incumbent.
On Friday, former president Goodluck Jonathan met with the national chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), David Mark after the party’s national caucus meeting. Even though the details of such a momentous meeting were not made public, the rumour mill has gone into overdrive. The feelers we’re getting are that Jonathan may be angling for the ADC presidential ticket, which is going to be a tall order, seeing the calibre of characters in the party who have already expressed their intention to vie for the presidency in 2027 on the platform of the ADC.
Jonathan’s hobnobbing with ADC leadership will likely cause a ripple in the Peoples Democratic Party and become a clog, albeit momentarily, in its wheel as the party makes conscious and deliberate efforts to rebrand, re-strategise by addressing the internal wrangling and leadership crisis that has enveloped it for some years now. The core of this restructuring and repositioning of the party is the party’s desire to mount a serious challenge for the presidency in 2027 and ultimately win the election by fielding a strong, popular and formidable candidate who will capture the hearts and imaginations of the electorate.
To achieve this, the PDP, having learned from its mistakes in 2023 when it threw open its presidential ticket — which made it possible for a northerner, former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, to clinch the ticket and in turn undermined their chances of victory at the polls — have now decided to zone the ticket to the south. This latest arrangement has seen names like former Anambra State governor and presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, and Jonathan bandied as the perfect fit for the PDP if they are to stand any chance of ruling the country in 2027. The problem here is that neither of these two is currently at the party. Though Jonathan has not officially left the PDP, his body language and actions do not reflect those of a person who is still attached to or associated with the party in any way.
While ADC continues to woo and bring political heavyweights and influential personalities into its fold, it remains to be seen how it intends to manage the clash of ego and charisma. There is already speculation that the ADC was a contraption cobbled together by certain interests in the party to help Atiku satisfy his lifetime ambition of becoming the president. Even though the party has debunked the speculation, its actions have somewhat inadvertently lent credence to such speculation. Fielding Atiku as its candidate in 2027 means it could be making the same mistake the PDP made in 2023.
And there is the question of Peter Obi. Obi is not a new face in Nigerian politics but the outcome of the 2023 presidential election has added a few more notches to his political belt and catapulted him straight to the top of the mainstream of Nigerian politics. The election saw his political mileage and capital soar. So huge is the support base he has that many dispassionate and impartial observers and commentators have reckoned that the coalition only stands a chance of defeating Tinubu if they field him as their presidential candidate. However, his attitude towards the coalition has been somewhat ambivalent. He has repeatedly said he is not against a coalition, but he is against a coalition whose sole purpose is to grab power at all costs and does not give priority to the needs and welfare of Nigerians. He also repeatedly stated that he would contest the 2027 presidential election.
Having Jonathan, Atiku and Obi in your ranks is what any political party will pull all the stops for, as it gives any party lucky to have the three men in its ranks the firepower needed to rout its opponents at the polls. But what then happens if the ambitions of these men become an albatross to the party’s goals? Jonathan has the right and is ably qualified to contest for the presidency and many Nigerians would want him on the ballot in 2027, but he must understand that his popularity and vaunted competence may not be enough to send him back to the Aso Rock for the second time. There is no gainsaying that there has been an increasing erosion of credibility of elections in Nigeria since 2015 when Goodluck Jonathan left office. Elections are now fraught with rigging, brazen manipulation and violence, and the courts are always on standby to affirm the charade and sham.
For now, speculations and conjectures are widespread and rife than facts, and no one can say with an appreciable degree of certitude what Jonathan plans and if his recent moves, especially his meeting with David Mark, are about him throwing his hat in the ring for 2027. And if he indeed plans to contest in 2027, wouldn’t PDP be a more appropriate and efficient platform for that? Or could it be that his meeting with Mark is nothing more than just a link-up of old friends who once ran the country together with Jonathan heading the executive arm of government and Mark heading the legislature. These questions and many are what political commentators will seek to provide answers to as we approach 2027.
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