2027: Nobody can stop Jonathan in PDP – Northern governor blows hot

Former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido has identified former President Goodluck Jonathan as the most viable candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2027 presidential election, according to DailyTrust.

He urged the party to take intentional steps to facilitate Jonathan’s return, emphasising that no current member of the PDP from the Southern region possesses comparable experience to that of Jonathan.

This statement was made during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today program. According to him, “I think for PDP now they should try to woo him. He is their best bet. Anybody put forth by the PDP, Nigerians will support him”.

Lamido described Jonathan as a leader who has guided the country before and understands governance and works well with others.

He said the former president “is most welcome, competent and very qualified. To me, I welcome him into the PDP. I think so far in the PDP, with all respect to all members, I do not see a better alternative than Jonathan if he comes to the PDP.

“I do not see any other person really. If we are giving the presidency to the South, it will be the PDP. Who is there in PDP now that can challenge Jonathan in terms of being in office, being full headed, being somebody who is willing to listen and somebody who is also a key player who believes in partnership” the former governor submitted.

Lamido also called for the expulsion of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, former Benue State governor, Samuel Ortom, former Abia State governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, and other PDP members whom he said worked against the party during the 2023 general elections.

“All those erring members, the Wikes, the Ortoms, the Ikpeazus and others who openly campaigned against the PDP in the 2023 elections and who say that they are going to work for the APC in 2027 should be sacked from the party,” he stated.

The PDP stalwart further expressed frustration over the “long standing culture of impunity within the party”, stressing that it was time the leadership enforced disciplinary measures.

“From way back after the primaries of 2022 leading to the elections of 2023 there are people who because of their interest and ambition felt aggrieved about what transpired in the party’s convention.

“And they turned against the party and fought the party. We have been having this kind of problem, the impunity of people castrating the party and denouncing it,” Lamido said.

Remarks made by Lamido have garnered significant attention in light of recent efforts within the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to engage former President Goodluck Jonathan in anticipation of the 2027 elections.

In August 2025, senior officials within the party confirmed that endeavors to persuade the former president to serve as the party’s candidate are ongoing.

This initiative follows renewed consultations and public appeals from prominent party members who contend that Jonathan’s distinct combination of national experience, electoral appeal, and statesmanship positions the PDP favorably for the potential reclamation of the presidency.

Jonathan, who held the office of president from 2010 to 2015, remains one of the most recognizable political figures in Nigeria. While the former president has not made an official announcement regarding a potential candidacy, his wife, Patience Jonathan, recently expressed her support for the administration of President Bola Tinubu by stating that she would not oppose the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu.