Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike has cautioned people asking former President Goodluck Jonathan to run in the 2027 presidential election.
Wike cautioned that such efforts could disrupt the country.
He made this statement on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday night.
He criticized the campaign as hypocritical, given how many of the same voices turned against Jonathan during his unsuccessful 2015 re-election bid.
“Anybody saying Jonathan should return because he will only do one term is only looking for a crisis.
“These are the same people who frustrated him in 2015. Why now? Jonathan has made a name for himself globally, and they just want to drag him into unnecessary conflict,” he said.
The minister argued that fronting Jonathan or any southern candidate, under the scheme of a “one-term presidency,” was a ploy lacking sincerity and a threat to Nigeria’s political balance.
Speaking on the state of the nation, Wike admitted that Nigerians were facing economic hardship but maintained that President Bola Tinubu had taken “tough but necessary decisions” to reposition the economy.
“Yes, there is hardship, I agree. But no one can deny that this government is making efforts to improve things. I see the projects in Abuja daily; they are evidence that something is happening,” he added.
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He also ridiculed former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s recent predictions of a looming revolution against hunger and poverty, calling him hypocritical.
“Atiku was vice president for eight years. Why didn’t he lay the foundation to prevent hunger then? Now he keeps talking about hunger and revolution.
“For me, I don’t even bother reading what he says, because there is no truth in it,” Wike stated.
Wike emphasized that, while Nigerians must be patient with the Tinubu administration, opposition figures should not use present economic issues for political benefit.
There has been a campaign for Jonathan to run for president in 2027.
In August, Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed stated that the People’s Democratic Party was contemplating Jonathan and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi as potential presidential contenders for 2027.
Mohammed hailed Jonathan as “one of the most celebrated politicians in Nigeria today” and said the party would welcome him back if he decided to return and contest.
“Certainly, former President Jonathan is one of the candidates we are considering if he joins us and opens his mind to run,” Mohammed said.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
