The Presidency on Monday said former President Goodluck Jonathan is free to contest the 2027 presidential election if he wishes, but stressed that Nigerians will not overlook what it called his “dismal record” in office.
This was contained in a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, in response to comments credited to former Minister of Information, Professor Jerry Gana, who reportedly endorsed Jonathan’s return to the race under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Onanuga dismissed Gana’s endorsement as “absurd,” accusing him of deluding himself with the idea that Jonathan could defeat President Tinubu in 2027. He also warned Jonathan to be wary of PDP “sugar-coated cheerleaders” who, according to him, seek to exploit him for selfish political, religious, and ethnic agendas, only to abandon him as they did in 2015.
“Don’t get us wrong: President Jonathan reserves the right to run if he wishes. It is his inalienable right to contest the presidency again. President Tinubu will wholeheartedly welcome him if he decides to enter the race. But Jonathan will have his date in the court of the land… to determine whether, having been sworn in twice, he is constitutionally eligible for another term,” Onanuga stated.
The Presidency, however, maintained that Nigerians would continue to judge Jonathan by his six years in office, which it described as wasteful and directionless.
It recalled that Jonathan inherited $66 billion in 2010 — $46 billion in foreign reserves and $20 billion in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) — but by 2015, reserves had dropped below $30 billion while the ECA was depleted to $2 billion.
According to the statement, his administration lacked a coherent economic agenda, engaged in frivolous spending, left salaries unpaid across many states, and presided over widespread corruption, including the diversion of security funds and fraudulent fuel importation deals.
By contrast, Onanuga highlighted Tinubu’s performance in the past 28 months, citing the removal of fuel subsidy, abolition of multiple exchange rates, stabilisation of the naira, restored investor confidence, and renewed infrastructure projects.
He pointed to second-quarter 2025 GDP growth of 4.23 per cent, inflation falling to 20.12 per cent in August, and foreign reserves rising to $42.03 billion as evidence of recovery.
“The nation has turned the corner. Our people have started reaping the gains of the bold reforms instituted by the Tinubu administration. Old roads are being reconstructed, new ones like the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway and the Sokoto–Badagry Highway are underway, and security challenges are being tackled,” the statement read.
Onanuga concluded that while Jonathan is welcome to join the 2027 race, Nigerians “who will not easily forget the recent past will not allow him or his party to return and run the economy down again.”
