Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has set the record straight, saying that it never invited former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest for the 2027 presidency.
Mr. Ibrahim Abdullahi, Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party, made the clarification in an interview with BBC Hausa.
He said a previous interview he granted about Jonathan’s eligibility for presidency was misunderstood.
“The report that PDP has issued its presidential ticket to former President Goodluck Jonathan or invited him to contest the 2027 presidential election is not true.
“What happened is this: I had an interview with a journalist where we discussed some issues. But in the course of the interview, he mentioned President Jonathan, asking about our opinion of him, because there are reports that he is being urged to run for the presidency.
“I responded by saying that he (Jonathan) is eligible to contest the election, because he is a Nigerian and has the right to do that by the provision of the law, and he still has one more term left. So, there is nothing wrong about him contesting the presidential election because he is eligible in the face of the law,” he said.
Abdullahi said Jonathan is just one of many prominent people, including 12 sitting governors, in the party who are eligible to seek the party’s presidential ticket.
He added that PDP would not need to woo Jonathan as the party has done enough for him.