A former presidential aspirant of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Mathias Tsado, has called on associates of former President Goodluck Jonathan to persuade him to contest in the 2027 presidential election.
Tsado made the appeal during an appearance on Channels Television’s breakfast show, Sunrise Daily, on Tuesday.
While Jonathan has not declared any intention to return to the political arena, Tsado expressed hope that the former president would reconsider.
“I am praying for a day that will come when President Goodluck Jonathan will declare and say, ‘I want to run,’” Tsado said.
“Those who have access to him should speak to him. There were rumours in 2023 that he might contest, this time, let them encourage him.”
Tsado believes Jonathan, who served as Nigeria’s president from 2010 to 2015, has the leadership qualities the country currently needs.
He highlighted Jonathan’s peaceful concession in the 2015 election as evidence of his commitment to democracy and national unity.
“He is not someone desperate for power,” Tsado noted.
“Remember he once said, ‘My ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian.’ That statement, and his actions in 2015, still resonate with many Nigerians today.”
Goodluck Jonathan became president in 2010 following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
He won the 2011 election but was defeated by Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, becoming the first incumbent president to lose an election since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999.
Despite stepping away from the political spotlight, Jonathan has remained a respected figure both in Nigeria and internationally.
Tsado remarked that Jonathan’s current status is one many politicians aspire to, saying, “He occupies a position today that most Nigerian politicians yearn for.”
