Former President Goodluck Jonathan is reportedly facing mounting pressure to abandon any intention of contesting the 2027 presidential election and instead back President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.
Several influential Niger Delta figures, including former militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, are leading the push.
Some of Jonathan’s close associates and kinsmen have also reportedly urged him to step aside from the race, arguing that both regional and national sentiments are currently not in his favour.
Tompolo, alongside Chief Kestin Pondi, Managing Director of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited, and Joshua Maciver, the APC’s deputy governorship candidate in the 2023 Bayelsa election, was said to have met with Jonathan at his Otuoke residence on October 16.
Sources familiar with the development disclosed that, although the meeting was officially described as a review of peace initiatives in the Niger Delta, its discussions were largely political.
A source revealed, “Tompolo appealed to the former president to shelve his rumoured presidential bid in 2027. He told him that public sentiment in the Niger Delta and across Nigeria is more favourable to President Tinubu’s continuation in office.”
Tompolo, who also heads the PBAT Door-2-Door Movement — a grassroots mobilization network for Tinubu’s re-election — reportedly warned Jonathan that he might not receive the level of local backing he once enjoyed if he decided to contest.
The source further stated, “He advised Jonathan not to be swayed by claims that he could unseat President Tinubu, pointing out that the majority of Niger Deltans now prefer supporting Tinubu’s re-election bid.”
Another insider said Jonathan listened attentively to the advice and assured Tompolo that he would reflect on the conversation before making any public declaration regarding his political plans.
However, speaking briefly to journalists after the meeting, the former president downplayed any political context, explaining that Tompolo’s visit was primarily to “review the prevailing peace in the Niger Delta.”
