- As former President visits APC National Chairman, Adamu on Monday night
BY EDMOND ODOK – Former President President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday night kept Nigerians guessing despite his denial of interest in contesting the 2023 presidential elections on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform.
According competent sources, it is indeed confusion galore among Jonathan’s loyalists and admirers arising from his sudden and unannounced meeting with the National Chairman of the ruling party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu in Abuja.
The sources said just within few hours after a statement surfaced in the public space distancing the former President from the N100 million nomination form purportedly bought for him by some Fulani pastoralists, many are still in shock that Jonathan visited Adamu’s residence and met with him behind closed doors.
An insider said though details of the meeting, which lasted for about an hour between 9pm and 10 pm, have not been made public, it may not be unconnected with the need to urgently sort out all grey issues concerning Jonathan being drafted to fly the APC’’s presidential flag in next year’s poll.
It was further gathered that with the desperate moves by core loyalists to stop his forays into the presidential contest through the APC, confusion is now trailing the purchase of the form for Jonathan with spirited efforts being made by some People Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders to have him claim the main opposition party’s ticket instead.
Sources said canvassing the position that joining APC and running on its platform would not only belittle his image but also pose a serious danger to the PDP, those considered as Jonathan’s ‘inner caucus friends’ have sustained the pressure that he shelves the move they described as ‘politically suicidal’ and stay put in the PDP even without being active.
Hinting about the serious pressure being mounted on the former president to accept the APC nomination form and meet with the Party’s leadership since Sunday morning, one of the sources said; “These people have been pressurizing Jonathan until the very last minute not to accept to run on the APC ticket no matter how tempting the conditions may be.
“That was why the former president did not present himself to the APC National Chairman on Sunday when the form was to be formally presented to him by the Almajiris who want to show him appreciation for what he did for them during his tenure by building schools and rehabilitating them.”
The source further said; “The main argument of those opposed to Jonathan running on the APC ticket is that it would be belittling to his image and standing in the world for him to do so given where he had been and what he represents as a former president of Nigeria.
“But the point is that the deadline for picking the form is this week and if he does not accept the form, the window would be closed and the opportunity lost,” one source explained.
“That was why the former president had to meet Adamu last night and their meeting was very fruitful and productive as both men came out smiling happily at the end of the one-hour meeting in Adamu’s house in Abuja.”
However, amid the undercurrents and deft political moves being made across party lines, the Jonathan’s camp through his media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, is still insistent that their principal has not made any commitment on the 2033 presidential race going forward. – With Vanguard reports
