The Federal Government has confirmed that former President Goodluck Jonathan is free to run in the 2027 elections.
The statement came from Bayo Onanuga, President Bola Tinubu’s special adviser on media and strategy. He issued it on Monday in response to comments by former information minister Jerry Gana.
Gana had claimed Jonathan would run under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and defeat Tinubu after 12 years.
Onanuga dismissed the claim as “absurd.” He warned that PDP leaders could lure Jonathan into the race and abandon him, just as they did in 2015.
He said: “Politicians of Jerry Gana’s ilk merely want to lure him into the race to satisfy their personal, political, religious, and ethnic interests. They will abandon him midstream, as they did in 2015, and leave Gentleman Jonathan in the lurch.”
Although Jonathan has the right to contest, Onanuga noted that his eligibility may face legal challenges because he has been sworn in twice.
“President Jonathan reserves the right to run if he wishes. It is his inalienable right to contest the presidency again. President Tinubu will wholeheartedly welcome him if he decides to enter the race. But Jonathan will have his date in the court of the land.
“Indeed, the jury will determine whether Jonathan, who was sworn in twice as president, satisfies the constitutional requirements and is eligible to contest the presidency and be sworn in, if successful, for a third term in office,” he said.
Onanuga strongly criticized Jonathan’s time in office. He blamed him for the start of Nigeria’s economic decline.
“Let us remind ourselves about Jonathan’s record. We cannot forget in a hurry how his regime, devoid of any clear economic agenda, engaged in frivolous spending, ran the economy aground and put the country in dire straits. The Jonathan administration severely damaged the economy, and all key indicators declined under his watch,” he said.
Onanuga argued that despite record oil revenues, Jonathan left less than $32 billion in 2015, down from $66 billion in reserves and the excess crude account in 2010. He added that by December 2014, the federal government could not pay salaries, while 28 states owed arrears.
He compared this with Tinubu’s “bold reforms,” citing fuel subsidy removal, currency rate harmonization, and improvements in GDP and reserves.
“In plain language, the nation has turned the corner. And our people have started reaping the gains of the bold reforms instituted by the Tinubu administration.
“President Jonathan and others are welcome to the 2027 race. They broke the economy before, but millions of Nigerians who will not easily forget the recent past will not allow them to return to run it down again,” Onanuga concluded.
