Should Jonathan run (away)? Analyst questions former president's potential return to politics

Political strategists are reportedly urging former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential elections, a move that has sparked debate about his legacy and political future.

Supporters, including figures like Professor Jerry Gana, are capitalizing on what they perceive as growing public nostalgia for the economic conditions during Jonathan's 2010-2015 presidency. With Nigeria currently grappling with intense economic pressures, rising food costs, and high fuel prices, the "Bring Back Jonathan" movement aims to present him as a familiar and steady hand to an electorate weary of uncertainty. Strategists also believe Jonathan's candidacy would ensure the presidency rotates back to the North by 2031, preventing a new candidate from securing an eight-year term.

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My dear brother, God has been so kind to you that He could be accused of being partial. Imagine, in a country of 200 million people, He picked you from the stable and enthroned you above everybody else. Deputy Governor, Governor, Vice President and President. You ruled Nigeria for six whole years!

However, a strong counter-argument suggests that re-entering the "do-or-die arena" of Nigerian presidential politics would be a significant step down for Jonathan. Having spent the last decade acting as a respected ECOWAS statesman, leading international election observation missions, and mediating complex political crises across Africa, a return to partisan campaigning could tarnish his hard-earned reputation. Critics warn that his standing as an objective, peaceful elder statesman would be dragged through the mud of partisan attacks, potentially demystifying him and diminishing his global stature.

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Having spent the last decade acting as a highly respected ECOWAS statesman, leading international election observation missions, and mediating complex political crises across Africa, it would be demeaning of you to return to the highly divisive, do-or-die arena of a Nigerian presidential campaign where your hard-earned reputation as an objective, peaceful elder statesman will be dragged through the mud of partisan personal attacks and vicious lampooning. Please, don’t demystify yourself. Don’t go down in history as a reed that can be carried hither and thither by the lagoon.