By Adesina Soyooye
Even before he confirms whether he would run for the Presidential seat in 2027 or not, the Presidency is threatening former President Goodluck Jonathan with disqualification.
It has reminded him that he would be met with a law suit if he does contest and wins over his eligibility to run for the office. In sum, the Presidency has told Jonathan not to waste his time in running for the office because he would be disqualified. Reason: The Presidency said having been sworn-in as President twice in 2008 and 2011, Jonathan cannot be sworn-in again for the third time.
Further more, Jonathan was reminded of his fate in 2015 when, even as an incumbent, he was abandoned by those who pretended to stand by him.
These were contained in a statement by the Presidency signed by the main Presidential Spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga in reaction to Professor Jerry Gana’s statement that Jonathan would contest the 2027 Presidential election under the embattled Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and send President Bola Tinubu back to Lagos from Abuja.
In a swift response to Gana, a PDP chieftain and former Minister for Information, Onanuga, in a statement Monday night said that while Jonathan is welcome to the race, he should be prepared to face the Court to confirm whether he is qualified to participate in the race, and whether he would be eligible to be sworn-in as President even if he won the election.
Mockingly calling Jonathan a gentleman who should not allow himself to be deceived by sugar-tongued politicians who the statement said would abandon him, as they did in 2015, the Presidency said: “We would caution former President Jonathan to be wary of the PDP’s sugar-coated cheerleaders. They will abandon him midstream as they did in 2015, and leave Gentleman Jonathan in the lurch.”
The Presidency also accused Jonathan of running down the economy during his Presidency, an economy which the Presidency claims President Tinubu is fixing.
The statement reads in full:
“As we begin the march towards the 2027 elections prematurely foisted on the nation by the desperation of the opposition ganging up against President Bola Tinubu despite his glaring economic strides, we are once again regaled with a cacophony of voices, most of them full of sound and fury, signifying nothing — to paraphrase inimitable William Shakespeare in one of his classic works, Macbeth.
One recent statement that stands out in its absurdity is Professor Jerry Gana’s. The former Minister of Information and National Orientation, moving to draft former President Goodluck Jonathan into the 2027 presidential race, affirmed that the former President would contest on the platform of the discredited Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which left behind a legacy of economic ruin after 16 years of bad governance.”
“We should caution former President Jonathan to be wary of the PDP’s sugar-coated cheerleaders. Politicians of Jerry Gana’s ilk merely want to lure him into the race to satisfy their personal, political, religious, and ethnic interests. They will abandon him midstream, as they did in 2015, and leave Gentleman Jonathan in the lurch.
“Don’t get us wrong: President Jonathan reserves the right to run if he wishes. It is his inalienable right. President Tinubu will wholeheartedly welcome him if he decides to enter the race. But Jonathan will have his day in court to determine whether, having been sworn in twice as president, he is constitutionally eligible to contest and, if successful, be sworn in for a third term.”
“We cannot forget in a hurry how his regime, devoid of any clear economic agenda, engaged in frivolous spending, ran the economy aground, and put the country in dire straits. The downturn that President Tinubu is working very hard to overcome actually began under Jonathan.
In 2010, Jonathan inherited $66 billion — $46 billion in foreign reserves and $20 billion in the Excess Crude Account. By 2015, when he was voted out, reserves had fallen below $30 billion, and the Excess Crude Account was depleted to $2 billion, despite record oil revenues.
“By December 2014, the Federal Government could no longer pay salaries, while at least 28 states owed workers huge arrears.”
“In just over two years, President Tinubu has removed the ruinous fuel subsidy, unified the exchange rate, and stabilised the economy. GDP grew by 4.23% in Q2 2025, inflation dropped to 20.12% in August 2025 — the lowest in three years — and foreign reserves now stand at $42.03 billion. Investor confidence has returned, the Naira has stabilised, and critical infrastructure projects such as the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway are underway.
In plain language, the nation has turned the corner. Nigerians are beginning to reap the gains of Tinubu’s reforms.
“The PDP broke the economy; President Tinubu is fixing it. Jonathan and others are welcome to the 2027 race, but Nigerians will not allow them to return and run it down again.”
Jonathan was Nigeria’s President Vice President under President Umaru Yar’adua but stepped in as President in 2008 to complete Yar’adua’s tenure on the passing of his Principal. He contested for the office in 2011 and won, but was defeated in 2015 by the Tinubu- engineered All Progressives Congress which fielded late President Muhammadu Buhari due to, what many insist was, internal sabotage.
In the run up to the 2027 election, Jonathan is under pressure to run for the office again. He has not made any statement to either confirm or not.
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