Jonathan’s Possible Return Causing Serious Panic in Tinubu’s Camp— Udenta
Political strategist and founding National Secretary of the Alliance for Democracy, Prof. Udenta Udenta, has said that the rumoured return of former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential election is causing visible panic within Nigeria’s ruling elite.
Speaking on Arise Tv flagship morning programme on Tuesday, Udenta described Jonathan’s possible second coming as a “spectre haunting the Nigerian political landscape,” particularly within the dominant power bloc.
“Somehow, for some reason, a spectre is haunting the Nigerian political space,” he said. “That spectre is much more acute within the ranks of the dominant or hegemonic power bloc. This bloc is composed of top members of parliament, presidential power brokers, noisy aides of the president, distracted ministers, and lawyers with dubious agendas. That spectre is Jonathan’s second coming.”
Udenta recalled Jonathan’s historic concession in 2015 when he telephoned then-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to congratulate him. “Precisely 10 years ago, former President Jonathan picked up the phone and made that call. That ‘Congratulations’ set a tone for a new direction, a new conversation about democracy, not just in Nigeria but in Africa. It became the brightest moment of democratic reawakening,” he said.
The strategist noted that Jonathan’s potential return had unsettled the political establishment. “The former President may likely seek a second term, even though he has not spoken directly. That is why there is fright in the ranks of the power brokers. It is understandable, for objective reasons, why there is confusion.”
Udenta further argued that if President Bola Tinubu seeks re-election, it would not be aspirational but rather a referendum on his governance.
“Four years is enough time for the country to assess. Two years after the shocks of naira floating and subsidy removal, the land is still ravaged by poverty, hunger, and insecurity,” he said.
“If Jonathan becomes the PDP candidate, it will be a tall order for the president and his team to win. At that time, his record will amount to a shabby, clueless, incompetent term of office.”
He accused Tinubu’s allies of attempting to constitutionally bar Jonathan from running again in order to destabilise the PDP. “It is better for them to shorten the conversation quickly, to declare the former president possibly constitutionally debarred from contesting, and then create some sense of chaos and disorder within the ranks of his party,” he said.
Despite predictions of collapse, Udenta noted that the PDP had managed to rebound.
“For nearly two years, the PDP was pronounced dead, wrecked by internal factionalisation,” he observed. “Now the same party that was written off is being asked not to field Jonathan because it has been reborn. I am not a member of the party, but as a close watcher of Nigerian politics, I can say the PDP’s revival was marshalled by the Governors’ Forum led by the Bauchi governor, the BOT under Senator Walid Jibrin, and the rebranded NWC led by Iyorchia Ayu. The party is coherent once again.”
According to him, Jonathan’s potential candidacy could provide the PDP with renewed coherence and momentum. “If Jonathan enters the fray, it won’t just be about his competence. It may also be about what he achieved over a decade ago—stabilising the economy, growing it to become the largest in Africa, and degrading Boko Haram,” Udenta said.
Udenta also predicted that Jonathan’s candidacy would attract global attention.
“If he comes back with 10 years of deep international exposure, the 2027 election will no longer be a national contest, but an international one,” he said. “The eyes of the world will be on Nigeria. The electoral process will face unprecedented scrutiny.”
Beyond Jonathan, Udenta also identified the 2023 Labour Party candidate as another major source of worry for the ruling APC.
“The second person creating panic is the former Labour Party candidate in 2023. He was a PDP member for a long time. If the PDP is truly reborn, either Jonathan or that candidate has the capacity and everything it takes to challenge for power,” he added.
Udenta concluded that the anxiety within the ruling party and the wider power bloc was evidence that Nigeria’s political terrain could shift dramatically in 2027.
