What I’ll do if Jonathan seeks my input on reported 2027 presidency bid – Wike

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said he will not hesitate to express his honest opinion to former President Goodluck Jonathan should the latter consult him over plans to return to the presidential race in 2027.

Although Jonathan has yet to make his intentions public, speculation has been rife that the former leader is considering a comeback bid.

Last month, former Minister of Information and Orientation, Professor Jerry Gana, hinted that Jonathan would contest the 2027 presidential election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Speaking to journalists after the PDP congress in Minna, Niger State, Gana said Nigerians had witnessed the performance of two other leaders since Jonathan left office and could now appreciate the difference.

“In 2015, former President Goodluck Jonathan said his ambition was not worth the blood of Nigerians. After him, another President ruled for eight years, and now another has ruled for two years,” Gana had said.

“Nigerians have seen the difference, and the difference is very clear. Nigerians are now asking us to bring back our friend, former President Goodluck Jonathan. I can confirm that Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will contest the presidential election in 2027 as PDP candidate, and we should be prepared to vote for him to return as President again.”

Jonathan has since held a series of strategic meetings with key political figures, fuelling more talk about a possible return.

However, speaking with journalists in Abuja on Friday, Wike said the former president had not discussed any such plans with him.

“Jonathan has never told me. He has never called me one day to say, ‘look, I’m being pressured to run,’” Wike said.“If he calls me and asks me, I’ll be able to tell him my mind, what I feel.”

The minister, who once enjoyed a close political relationship with Jonathan, had previously advised the former president against returning to the race.

At an earlier media session in Abuja, Wike cautioned Jonathan not to allow himself to be used by politicians who, according to him, deceived him in the past.

“I know Jonathan very well. He has international respect and should maintain that. These same people weighing Jonathan down are the ones who played him in 2015. They are only trying to cause confusion in the party,” he had said.

“People pushing Jonathan, what strength do they have? Were they not the same people who worked against him in 2015? Those calling for a Jonathan candidacy are the same political actors who ‘played him’ during the 2015 elections.”