A former member of the Federal House of Representatives from Bayelsa State, Israel Sunny-Goli, says it would be a mistake for Goodluck Jonathan to contest in the 2027 presidential election.
Mr Sunny-Goli spoke when he appeared as a guest on Channels TV’s Politics Today on Thursday night.
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Mr Jonathan, who hails from Bayelsa State, served as Nigerian president under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from 2010 to 2015 before he was defeated by the then-APC candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.
Why it’s a mistake
Mr Sunny-Goli, a member of the APC, argued that Mr Jonathan should shelve any ambition to return as Nigeria’s president in 2027 because political “odds” are against him.
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“People have been speculating about Goodluck Jonathan coming to contest in the next elections. But I believe that can’t happen because the odds are against him.
“I think Jonathan will take this in good faith because he’s a good man that wants the progress of the state,” he said.
Continuing, the former federal lawmaker said: “I know Jonathan will not make the mistake of contesting for the 2027 elections because he knows the political realities in Bayelsa State today.
“Everybody wants to align with the APC. That’s the only stable political party in Nigeria right now. PDP is dead. The ADC is wobbling.”
Background
There have been speculations that Mr Jonathan would contest in the 2027 presidential election in Nigeria, although the former president has yet to declare his intention.
Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, in August, said Mr Jonathan was among those being considered by the PDP for the party’s 2027 presidential ticket.
READ ALSO: Bayelsa senator joins APC, says PDP can’t win councillorship elections
Apart from Mr Mohammed, who is also the chairperson of the PDP Governors Forum, other party chieftains have hinted that the former president would likely become the party’s flagbearer in the 2027 presidential election.
In September, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike said those pushing Mr Jonathan to contest in the next election were only looking for a crisis.
Mr Wike, a member of the PDP who works as FCT minister in the APC-led federal government, argued that those pushing Mr Jonathan to seek reelection were the same people who frustrated the former president’s second term bid in 2015.
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