2027 : No automatic ticket for Jonathan in PDP —Gbenga-Hashim
By John Okezie
The Gbenga Hashim Solidarity Movement (GHSM) has said that former President Goodluck Jonathan will not be the automatic presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) in the 2027 election.
The GHSM, in a statement by its national coordinator, Abdulrazaq Hamzat, stated that the PDP presidential candidate for the 2027 polls, can only emerge through a transparent process in line with the Electoral Act 2022
Hamzat, who was reacting to a statement by Professor Jerry Gana that Jonathan will contest the 2027 poll as presidential candidate of the PDP, said it is only delegates that will determine the standard bearer in the next election.
According to him, “With due respect, Professor Jerry Gana is entitled to his enthusiasm about the return of former President Jonathan. However, only PDP delegates to the national convention can pick the party’s flag bearer, and ultimately, God Almighty will determine the outcome, not a few party stalwarts.
“If President Jonathan desires a return to Aso Rock, he must be ready to square up with nationally unifying aspirants such as Dr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim in an open and transparent primary.”
He stated that President Jonathan was not particularly fantastic, noting that
Nigeria’s decision in 2011 to break ranks with the African Union and support NATO’s intervention in Libya was a “strategic blunder” that allegedly destabilized the Sahel and aggravated insecurity across Nigeria, Mali, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, and other West African countries.
“The Jonathan era cannot be painted as a perfect time. It was a period when the diversity of our nation began to be deeply mismanaged, rekindling ethnic tensions and religious bigotry, a legacy that has unfortunately worsened under subsequent governments”, he added.
Hamzat argued that Nigerians deserve a fresh leadership and a new vision to tackle the nation’s challenges, insisting that “the only way forward is forward, not backward.”
