… Ex- President emerges PDP Sole presidential candidate
… Party waives screening requirements
… Patience Jonathan, Wike, Dickson, Anglican Church oppose bid
By Obinna F. Nwachukwu and Ahmed Akanbi
Former President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR yesterday emerged as the sole presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, (PDP), ahead of the 2027 general election after he was reportedly cleared by the party’s screening committee.
The development followed the conclusion of the screening exercise conducted by a committee headed by former Governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu.
Jonathan’s emergence was announced on Tuesday, signaling a major development within the opposition party as preparations intensify for the next presidential election.
Confirming the move, PDP chieftain Umar Sani disclosed that the former president had already purchased the party’s nomination form, indicating his readiness to formally return to active partisan politics.
To pave the way for his emergence, the PDP led by Barrister Kabiru Turaki, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had waived the screening requirements for Jonathan.
Meanwhile, sources close to the party told our correspondent that Jonathan would be contesting the 2027 presidential election with Turaki as his running mate.
On Monday, a federal high court in Abuja fixed May 26 for judgement in the suit challenging Jonathan’s eligibility to contest the 2027 presidential election. The case was instituted by one Barrister Johnmary Jideobi.
Peter Lifu, the presiding judge, fixed the date after parties adopted their final written addresses in the matter.
The court is also expected to rule on an application seeking the judge’s withdrawal from the case over alleged bias.
At the resumed hearing, Chris Uche, counsel to Jonathan, urged the court to dismiss the recusal application, describing it as frivolous and an abuse of court process. Uche argued that the allegations against the judge were based on a misrepresentation of the court proceedings.
The senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN) asked the court to dismiss the application with substantial cost, and proceed with judgement in the substantive suit.
Also opposing the application, Maimuna Lami-Shiru, Director of Civil Litigation and Public Law at the Federal Ministry of Justice, who represented Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, argued that the motion lacked merit.
She said while a judge would recuse himself where there were legitimate concerns about impartiality, the plaintiff failed to establish any valid ground for such action in the instant case.
Lami-Shiru described the motion as an abuse of court process, and asked the court to dismiss it with N2 million cost against the plaintiff.
In the substantive suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, Jideobi is seeking an order restraining Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election.
The plaintiff argued that Jonathan, having completed the tenure of the late former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, and later served a full term after the 2011 elections, had exhausted the constitutional limit of two terms in office.
He, therefore, asked the court to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from accepting or publishing Jonathan’s name as a candidate in the 2027 elections or any future presidential poll.
INEC, listed as the second defendant in the suit, was not represented in court during Monday’s proceedings.
Jonathan’s insistence on contesting the 2027 presidential election is against several calls by well-meaning Nigerians, including the leader of Jonathan’s Anglican Church, His Grace Most Rev. Henry Ndukauba, to the former President to drop his presidential ambition and focus on building a strong, virile and united nation.
Indications that Jonathan would join the 2027 presidential contest, despite earlier signals that he would stay away from frontline politics emerged on Tuesday, following media reports that the former President had already secured the Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms from a faction of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) through some of his allies in what insiders described as preliminary groundwork for a possible comeback bid.
It was gathered that the former President picked the forms from the Kabiru Turaki-led faction, following the restoration of the faction by the Board of Trustees, after the Supreme Court judgement.
In what appeared to be a confirmation, a former presidential aide and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Umar Sani, has alleged that ex-President Goodluck Jonathan has already purchased a presidential nomination form ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Sani, who served as the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to a former Vice President, Namadi Sambo, made the claim during an appearance on Trust TV on Tuesday.
Jonathan has not publicly declared any intention to contest the 2027 presidential election, nor has he confirmed any political platform. However, Sani suggested that ongoing internal challenges within the PDP may be influencing the former President’s cautious political positioning.
According to him, Jonathan’s recent engagements already point to serious political interest, arguing that actions in politics often speak louder than formal declarations.
“The issue is not about whether we will extract commitment from him. What is most important in politics is action.
“If your action suggests you are interested, there are certain steps that follow. One of them is the procurement of the nomination form. He has procured the nomination form. In fact, he is about to come and submit it publicly,” Sani said.
Sani dismissed suggestions that the PDP was attempting to leverage Jonathan’s popularity for political gain, insisting instead that the former President remains widely respected.
“The fact of the matter is that we believe Jonathan is the right choice at this moment,” he added.
He also expressed confidence that any legal challenge to Jonathan’s eligibility to contest would fail, arguing that the matter had already been settled by the courts.
However, a source close to the former President disclosed that Jonathan’s final decision would depend entirely on the outcome of the ongoing legal battle surrounding his eligibility to seek another term in office.
The issue is the constitutional debate over whether Jonathan’s completion of the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s tenure, following his death in 2010, alongside his subsequent election in 2011, which amounts to two terms under the amended constitutional provisions on presidential tenure.
According to the source, Jonathan’s camp maintains that he only won one presidential election in his own right, and therefore, remains eligible to contest again.
“If the judgment goes in his favour, he will declare. If it does not, the ambition will be abandoned,” the source told Daily NewsCraft on Monday.
This comes amid increasing uncertainty within the opposition parties ahead of the 2027 elections, particularly within the PDP where internal divisions and leadership disputes continue to shape political calculations.
The former President’s possible re-entry is also expected to reshape ongoing alignments among opposition figures, including former Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, who sources said recently held a private meeting with Jonathan.
Insiders, however, claim Obi may have underestimated the seriousness of the former President’s consultations after reportedly leaving the meeting with the impression that Jonathan had no immediate presidential ambition.
However, Jonathan’s possible return is already generating mixed reactions within opposition circles, with some political actors and commentators alleging that his emergence could ultimately benefit President Bola Tinubu by further splitting opposition votes ahead of 2027.
While there is no evidence directly linking the former President to the ruling camp, the speculation has continued to gain traction across political discussions and social media platforms amid growing concerns over the opposition’s inability to unite behind a single candidate.
Jonathan is said to be receiving encouragement from influential northern political interests, especially from the North West, but the project is reportedly facing resistance or indifference from key figures within his traditional political base in the South-South.
Among those allegedly not backing the move are the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the former Bayelsa Governor, Seriake Dickson.
Sources also claimed that former First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, has distanced herself from any discussions surrounding a possible return bid, amid her closeness to the political camp of First Lady Oluremi Tinubu.
Aides who worked closely with Jonathan during his administration are equally said not to be part of the emerging political structure being put together ahead of 2027.
Analysts are of the opinion that a favourable court ruling for Jonathan could alter the opposition equation, and trigger fresh political realignments across party lines.