Race for 2027 kicks off as PDP backs call for Jonathan’s return

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party has thrown its weight behind the call for former President Goodluck Jonathan to join the presidential race for 2027.

In the past few weeks, there has been a growing rumour that northern elites and politicians are not happy with President Bola Tinubu’s administration and subtly yearning for a change of government in the next election.

Four days ago, Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, also lent his voice to the agitation, vowing to jettison his presidential ambition if Jonathan agrees to contest.

Mohammed gave his blessing at an event organised by a non-governmental organisation, Save Africa Initiative, in Abuja.

According to him, the former President has the requisite experience to revamp the economy and would do a good job if given a second mandate to manage the country.

Reacting in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Ibrahim Abdullahi, said the positions of the Bauchi governor and northern elites resonated with the opposition party.

He said, “We are absolutely in support of the position of the Bauchi State governor. Don’t forget, he was a prominent member of theJonathan’s administration where he was a minister. As the chairman of the 13 governors of the PDP, a two-term minister, former senator and a two-term governor rounding off his second term, you will expect him to understand and appreciate the situation of where this country is coming from, where it is at the moment and where we hope to take it to in the future.

“If you are talking about a southern Presidency in 2027, we should be looking at one who had enjoyed one term and will probably give Nigerians hope and prosperity as opposed to the one we have in power. Secondly, if you are also talking about a nationalist, somebody who would not rig an election to keep himself in office, who announced before the counting process was over, that he lost, it has to be Jonathan.

“You remember that he called the victor, congratulated him and asked him to send people for the transition process. So, it is this kind of person with a listening ear that we believe can save the situation. No President in Nigerian history has been as criticised as Ebele Jonathan. We tolerated all sorts of insults targeted at us and his Presidency. But today, he is the one everybody is looking for with torchlight, even in broad daylight.”

When reminded that the decision may not go down well with PDP former presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, who has been labelled a serial contester by the ruling All Progressives Congress, the PDP spokesman kicked.

According to him, Atiku cannot dictate for the party who to field in 2027 despite being a major stakeholder of the PDP.

“It is not the place of Atiku to decide for the PDP. We are running a national political party, for crying out loud; one that has governed this country for 16 years. We cannot be expected to have one person determining the direction of the party. If anything, we respect him. He has given it (the presidency) a trial and has been on this for too long.

“But there are times when you realise a battle is no longer around you and you support someone. This is how things are done. If in 2019, we tried, in 2023, we tried again with Atiku, there is nothing wrong in trying someone else in 2027, especially if the odds seemed to favour that person more, which is the case.

“The situation this country is facing today is one that has gone beyond party lines or other narrow considerations. We require a nationalist in the clout of Goodluck Jonathan to be able to salvage the situation. It is clear that for the six and a half years that he was President, he was able to stabilise the forex to a very reasonable extent. The country was able to go on single digit inflation. This we will continue to reference,” he stated.

But the ruling APC disagreed, saying it was too early for any party to be talking about 2027.

In an exclusive phone call with our reporter, the National Director of Publicity for the party, Bala Ibrahim, mocked the PDP, which he said was showing sign of desperation to cling onto anything for survival.

Ibrahim, however, warned that should Jonathan accept to run against the President Bola Tinubu on the platform of the opposition party in the next election, he would taste the bitter pill of defeat again.

He said, “For us to start talking about 2027 is not only premature, but a calculation that is doomed. Less than 40 per cent of the mandate given to the President under the APC has not even been consumed. There is just no way the APC as a party will be jittery, if at all, there is such plan to enrol former President Goodluck Jonathan into the race.

“The APC defeated him when he was in power. Defeating him when he’s out of power will be a walkover. It is something that cannot even give the party a sleepless night. So, whoever is making this permutation, if the intention is to scare the APC as a party, I think he needs to go back to the drawing board and think again. We are not worried.

“As I said, let’s get to the river before we start thinking of crossing it. It is too early to start talking about 2027. But if you bring 10 former President Jonathan, they cannot defeat the APC as of today.”

When told that a larger section of political analysts believe the APC defeated Jonathan only because of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s cult-like followership across the country in 2015, Ibrahim laughed.

The APC spokesman insisted that it is on record that Tinubu was the leader of the party when Buhari shocked the Otuoke politician.

He also expressed optimism that history will repeat itself if Jonathan accepts the PDP offer to contest against Tinubu.

“The truth is that the APC defeated Goodluck Jonathan when the President (Tinubu) was the leader of the party. The APC will defeat him again now that Tinubu is the President and the leader of the party. It is not the Buhari’s cult followership that matters. It is the party arrangement. Buhari did not contest on an independent candidature status.

“Forget about the shenanigans that are on display now. When it’s time for election, the party will readily package its candidate and matches them for the consumption of the people. And I assure you that the people will buy it. But it is too early to start discussing this. But you know politicians for who they are.

“They always want to heat up the politics so that they keep seeing things as relevant. But in a four-year term, the president has just done slightly above one year and you are already thinking of somebody to bring in. No problem, democracy permits people to test the waters. But we will do things when it is time for them to be done,” he stated.

Efforts to get the reaction of Jonathan’s camp were unsuccessful.

When The PUNCH reached out to the spokesperson for the former President, Ikechukwu Eze, to clarify if his principal was interested in running for the 2027 presidential race, he bailed out.

The Punch