Ogona Anita
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday held a closed-door meeting with former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
This meeting may not be unconnected with a significant development against the backdrop of intensifying political permutations ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Details of the meeting were not immediately made public, but the high-level engagement comes at a time when calls for Jonathan’s political comeback have gained renewed momentum across the country.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Information and Strategy, shared photographs of President Tinubu and former President Jonathan during their meeting on Wednesday via his social media page.
Last week, a group known as the Goodluck Presidential Support Campaign Group formally urged the former president to contest the 2027 presidential election, describing the moment as “critical” for Nigeria’s future.
Speaking during a press conference themed “An Appeal for the Return of Purposeful Leadership Ahead of the 2027 Election,” the group’s Director General, Jeff Okoi, said the call was driven by what he described as the urgent need for experienced leadership.
“Our nation stands at a critical juncture, confronted by serious challenges that demand experienced leadership, national unity, economic revitalisation, and restored global confidence,” Okoi stated.
He added that the appeal followed “extensive consultations across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones” and engagements with key stakeholders, insisting that the push for Jonathan’s return was “not driven by sentiment but by conviction rooted in leadership experience and past performance.”
The meeting at the Villa also comes months after former Minister of Information, Jerry Gana, publicly declared that Jonathan would contest the 2027 presidential election as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a statement that triggered widespread reactions across the political landscape.
Gana had argued that Nigerians were “now demanding Jonathan’s return” after experiencing successive administrations since he left office in 2015.
However, the Presidency swiftly pushed back against the narrative. In a statement, presidential spokesman Onanuga dismissed the idea that Jonathan’s return represented a solution to Nigeria’s challenges.
“Politicians of Jerry Gana’s ilk merely want to lure him into the race to satisfy their personal, political, religious, and ethnic interests,” Onanuga said, warning that such actors could abandon the former president “midstream, as they did in 2015.”
He maintained that while Jonathan has the constitutional right to contest, Nigerians would not forget what he described as the “dismal record” of his administration.
“President Jonathan reserves the right to run if he wishes… but Nigerians will ultimately decide,” the statement added, hinting that his eligibility could still face legal scrutiny.
Legal concerns have also been raised by prominent voices, including human rights lawyer Chidi Odinkalu, who argued that any attempt by Jonathan to run in 2027 could face constitutional hurdles.
Citing provisions of the 1999 Constitution, Odinkalu noted that questions remain over whether Jonathan, who was sworn in twice as president, would be eligible for another term bid.
