Politics
Presidency: Plot to adopt Jonathan thickens, Northern APC aspirants to step down
Some All Progressives Congress leaders have stepped up moves to adopt former President Goodluck Jonathan as the party’s consensus presidential candidate in 2023.
The moves formed part of the discussions between the former President and the APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, in Abuja on Monday night.
It was gathered that already, the party leaders, including two northern governors, had reached out to other members of the National Working Committee to ensure the adoption of Jonathan as the consensus candidate.
But it was learnt that the moves by the former President and his supporters had generated a groundswell of anger from other contestants, who felt the plan would amount to injustice if it sailed through.
The ex-president and his backers were demanding that he should be adopted as the consensus candidate without going through indirect or direct primaries.
It was on April 23 reported that Jonathan had given some conditions for his backers in the APC before he could join the party’s presidential race.
According to the report, the former President is seeking an open endorsement of his presidential ambition by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).
Jonathan is also insisting that he should be saved the rigour of facing founding APC members including the national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu; the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo; former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha and the Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu, during the party’s presidential primaries.
A source, who was privy to the meeting between Jonathan and Adamu on Monday night said the ex-President had signified interest to join the APC presidential race.
The source stated, “He fears the backlash and the opposition he will meet from members who are already in the race. He is still insisting on consensus so that he will not face the rigour of indirect primaries.
“Already, his backers, including the national chairman have started working on the consensus arrangement. They have reached out to the few presidential aspirants from the North who will readily step down for Jonathan.”
Another source said, “Jonathan’s meeting with the APC chairman went well. He sought the party leadership’s support for his candidacy and also demanded assurances that he would be exempted from the mandatory screening and other stringent conditions in the form.
“He would not be available for the screening because he won’t be in the country for two weeks as he is going to Dakar, Senegal for the ‘Dialogue on sustaining democratic principles in the ECOWAS sub-region organised by the West African Elders Forum.’
A group, the Nomadic Herders and Almajiris, had on Monday obtained the APC N100m nomination form for the ex-President.
But Jonathan, in a statement by his spokesman, Ikechukwu Eze, disowned the group, saying he did not authorise any organisation to obtain the form for him.
Commenting on the plan to draft Jonathan into the APC presidential race, the Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, said it would be difficult for the ruling party to campaign with Jonathan as its presidential candidate.
Umahi, who is also vying for the APC presidential ticket, said this shortly after he met with the President at the State House, Abuja, on a “Thank you” visit following last week’s visit to Ebonyi.
According to him, it will be difficult for the party to reconcile its policies and promises with those of the main opposition which brought Jonathan into power in 2011.
He stated, “We don’t forget people who have helped us, but on the question of joining, I may not say much about that because I’ve seen a lot of write-ups, denials, but if he decides to join and to run, it will, for me, become one of the wonders in this century.
“The reason is that if you go and see the campaign programmes of the APC and you now ask President Jonathan to come and run, I don’t know what will be our campaign promises and what will be the stories we’ll be telling Nigerians.
“I strongly believe that he was not aware of the forms and I want to believe that people that are mischievous would have bought the forms to embarrass him. But from what I read, he has quickly distanced himself from that. But as I said, if that is not the case, then the Guinness Book of Records is not totally filled up,” Umahi noted.
The governor also argued that the APC presidential ticket should be zoned to the South-East as he debunked the notion that the region was employing blackmail against the North.
The Ekiti State Coordinator, South West Agenda for Asiwaju Tinubu 2023, Senator Tony Adeniyi, in an interview with The PUNCH, said at Jonathan’s age and his level of education, he should not allow people to deceive him.
He asked, “Are those prompting him saying that the APC does not have people that can contest that they are calling on Jonathan who was ousted for his non-performance by the APC? Somebody who was described as clueless, what clue has he gotten now?
“We have a robust aspirant and candidate in Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who has shown that he is a strong force. He should just respect himself and go about doing whatever he is doing? What has he left in Aso Rock that he wants to come back for? If some people are pushing him for a single term, he should not be the scapegoat,” Adeniyi said.
By Okey Maduforo, Awka
Ahead of the 2027 National Assembly elections, a mass protest voting movement may be building up in Anambra South Senatorial District, following reported moves by members of major political parties to support the candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Chief Ebuka Onunkwo.
The development is said to be linked to grievances among some members of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), All Progressives Congress (APC), African Democratic Congress (ADC) and remnants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the treatment allegedly meted out to Onunkwo during previous political contests.
Onunkwo, who had previously contested the Anambra South senatorial seat under APGA, later emerged as the NDC candidate for the 2027 election.
Although the ADC is currently embroiled in legal disputes over the authentic candidates and the conduct of its primary elections, some members of the APC and APGA are also reportedly dissatisfied with developments within their respective parties.
It was gathered that a section of APGA members, in particular, are backing Onunkwo as a form of protest over the conduct of the party’s senatorial primary, while some members of other parties are also believed to be considering voting for him irrespective of their party affiliations.
Confirming the growing support for Onunkwo, the Chief Executive Officer of NOWAS Oil and Gas Limited and a major stakeholder in Anambra South politics, Chief Ignesus Ikechukwudere Nnubia, said the NDC candidate currently enjoys widespread acceptability across party lines.
Nnubia said the growing support for Onunkwo had made his party affiliation less significant, arguing that voters would ultimately vote according to their conscience and assessment of the candidates.
He said, “At the moment, the number of APGA members with him and supporting him makes one wonder what is left of that party. Even the remnants of the PDP have pitched their tents with him, while members of the ruling APC at the national level are also behind him.
“So, the party that he belongs to is not a factor at all. You know that it is a game of numbers, and people are going to vote according to their conscience and not necessarily because of the political party they belong to.
“People are not bound to vote for their party, and some of them are ready and willing to vote for him.
“We are not talking about the party because he will surely get votes from the NDC, APGA, APC and even other political parties that are already closing ranks to support him as their candidate.”
Nnubia further described Onunkwo as the candidate currently standing tall among the contenders for the Anambra South senatorial seat, expressing confidence that his emergence would usher in what he described as a “new dawn” for the district.
He said political parties should not be the major consideration for voters, stressing that what matters most is the ability of elected representatives to improve the lives of their constituents.
According to him, political parties exist because of the people, and therefore the influence of party structures and incumbency has its limits during elections.
Nnubia said those factors would ultimately be tested by the electorate in the 2027 election, which he described as a contest in which voters’ choices would determine the outcome.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 Ebonyi State election, Chief Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii, has pledged to attract more than ₦2 trillion in private-sector investment to the state within six months of assuming office if elected.
Odii made the pledge while addressing supporters in Lagos ahead of the formal commencement of his campaign.
He said his investment strategy would cover key sectors of the Ebonyi economy, including mining, hospitality, real estate and manufacturing.
According to the PDP candidate, he has identified more than 2,000 prospective investors, each capable of investing about ₦1 billion in the state.
“I have over 2,000 people who can invest ₦1 billion each. When you multiply it, you will get over ₦2 trillion. This has been structured in such a way that all aspects of the economy will be involved,” Odii said.
He said the proposed investment drive was designed not only to inject capital into the state but also to create jobs, expand the productive base of the economy and provide opportunities for young people and entrepreneurs.
Odii said Ebonyi’s natural resources and strategic location placed it in a strong position to attract large-scale investments if its economic potential was properly harnessed.
He promised that his administration would prioritise private-sector participation, industrialisation and job creation while creating an enabling environment for both local and foreign investors.
The candidate also said existing businesses in the state would be supported to expand, while new investors would be encouraged to establish operations across various sectors.
His pledge comes amid growing political activities ahead of the 2027 governorship election, with economic development, employment generation and wealth creation featuring prominently in his campaign message.
The proposed ₦2 trillion investment target within six months, if achieved, would represent a significant boost to Ebonyi’s economy and rank among the most ambitious private-sector investment mobilisation plans proposed in the state.
By Okey Maduforo, Awka
The planned visit of the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to Anambra State has sparked controversy following a protest by the state Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Emma Anosike, that the party was not informed about the visit.
Anosike said the APC in Anambra was never consulted or briefed about the proposed visit, adding that the party was taken aback by reports that the wife of the party’s national leader and presidential candidate, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, would be visiting the state without recourse to the state chapter.
He said, “It is indeed strange that the First Lady of our presidential candidate is visiting Anambra State without recourse to the party in the state.
“The party wishes to state categorically that we are not part of the arrangements for the reception of our First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, because the party was never put in the picture.”
Anosike also dismissed the mantra that “The Progressives Are Working Together”, being canvassed by the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), describing it as a smokescreen by the ruling party in Anambra to hijack President Tinubu’s re-election from the APC.
He said, “For instance, the APGA-led government in Anambra State did not interface with us on the organisation of the visit, and the party wonders if the progressives are indeed working together.”
The APC chairman, however, said the development would not compromise the First Lady’s visit, urging all APC members and supporters in the state to turn out and give Senator Oluremi Tinubu a warm welcome.
He stressed that despite the party’s reservations over the arrangements, APC members remained committed to welcoming the First Lady to Anambra State.
Former Deputy Governor of Bauchi State, Sagir Saleh, has resigned his membership of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Saleh, who served as deputy governor under former Governor Isa Yuguda, announced his resignation in a letter submitted to the party leadership in Katagum Local Government Area.
He cited personal reasons for his decision but did not provide further details.
His exit comes amid growing disagreements within the Bauchi APC following the party’s 2027 governorship primary. Other prominent members, including former governorship aspirant Bala Jibrin and Sunusi Kunde, an associate of Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, have also reportedly left the party.
Jibrin, a former National Auditor of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), resigned on August 31, 2026, following his opposition to the emergence of former Bauchi Governor Muhammad Abubakar as the APC’s 2027 governorship candidate.
He had criticised the primary process and questioned how the candidate emerged.
Kunde also resigned from the APC in August, submitting his resignation to the party chairman of Beti Ward in Misau Local Government Area.
The latest departures are coming as efforts continue to resolve internal disputes and disagreements among APC members in the state.
The Leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, has raised the alarm over an alleged plot to assassinate former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 general election.
Ayodele issued the warning in a video shared on his verified X account on Sunday, urging both opposition figures to strengthen their security and remain vigilant.
The cleric did not identify those allegedly behind the purported plot but claimed that attempts were being made to eliminate Obi and Atiku.
According to him, divine intervention would prevent the alleged plan from succeeding.
“Obi and Atiku, be very conscious of your security. They are looking for any means to eliminate Obi and Atiku.
“But God will never allow it to happen. Watch out and be cautious about your security,” he said.
Ayodele also urged President Bola Tinubu to reconsider travelling to the United States, alleging that there were forces in America working against his political fortunes.
The claims come as political activities and realignments intensify ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
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