In a fresh political jab, former Edo State Governor and senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole, has sent a clear message to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan: Don’t contest in 2027.
Speaking during an interview on Channels TV’s Sunday Politics, Oshiomhole didn’t mince words. He said only those who don’t truly care about Jonathan’s legacy would encourage him to return to the presidential race.
“If a man had PDP at its peak and lost, only his enemies will push him to run again,” Oshiomhole said.
According to him, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), which defeated Jonathan in 2015, can still beat him today; especially now that the PDP’s base in the South-South has weakened.
Oshiomhole didn’t stop at political calculations. He reminded Nigerians of the legacy Jonathan left behind in 2015, when he famously conceded defeat to President Muhammadu Buhari – the first time in Nigeria’s history an incumbent lost and peacefully handed over.
“That quote about ‘the blood of no Nigerian is worth my ambition’ – that’s the Jonathan people respect today,” he said.
Jonathan’s move was widely praised at home and abroad. For many, it elevated him into the ranks of elder statesmen, a role Oshiomhole says he should protect; not risk in another bruising election cycle.
“He has found relevance without being in power. Why spoil that now?”
While Jonathan hasn’t officially declared interest, talk of a potential 2027 return has been heating up in both PDP and APC circles.
Some top PDP chieftains like Governor Bala Mohammed and Senator Abba Moro have openly admitted the party is wooing Jonathan to run again, hoping his old political charm could swing votes.
Not only is his political stronghold in the South-South now shaky, but questions have also been raised about his eligibility, given that he has been sworn in twice; first after President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s death, and then for his own term in 2011.
Bayo Onanuga, spokesperson to President Tinubu, recently hinted that Nigerians remember Jonathan’s “dismal record” in office; and won’t be easily swayed.
For now, the ex-president remains silent, leaving both critics and loyalists guessing about his next political move.
