Former President Goodluck Jonathan has discussed his presidential ambitions with Mallam Mamman Daura, President Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew and the leader of the Aso Rock cabal.
The governing All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidacy and expression of interest papers for the former President have been acquired by a Northern alliance.
When asked if he would run, Jonathan told his fans to “watch out.” The forms were purchased a few days later.
Jonathan was also said to have joined the APC’s Bayelsa chapter.
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Sources later informed Newsmen that the former President’s allegations that he did not authorized the purchase of the multi-million-naira forms were false.
“Contrary to his denials, former President Goodluck Jonathan gave over N200 million to the governor of Jigawa, Mohammed Badaru, to purchase the APC nomination and expression of interest forms for him,” a source privy to the arrangement had told Newsmen.
According to reports, the Jigawa governor agreed to buy one for Jonathan and one for himself so as not to create any suspicions that the former President was seriously considering running for president.
Jonathan is set to face off against Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Lagos Governor Bola Tinubu, former Minister of Transport Rotimi Amaechi, Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, and former Minister of State for Education Emeka Nwajiuba for the ruling party’s ticket.
Despite the fact that the ruling party’s delegates are slated to choose a presidential candidate between May 29 and 30, reports say the cabal is insisting on a consensus.
President Buhari will appoint one of the hopefuls, while the others will simply stand aside for the contender, as was done during the APC’s national convention on March 26, which elected Senator Abdullahi Adamu as the party’s chairman.
In an attempt to push the consensus process on others, the APC included a contentious part in its nomination forms that allowed aspirants to withdraw.
During his meeting with Daura and other cabal members, Jonathan was allegedly offered the party’s automatic ticket.
It was also learned that Buhari has endorsed him as the APC’s consensus candidate.
“Goodluck Jonathan has visited Mamma Daura to seek APC consensus candidacy,” a top source told SaharaReporters on Tuesday.
“The cabal members have told Buhari to back Jonathan. The President, some NWC members led by the chairman, Adamu, APC governors and other key leaders of the party would soon meet with all the presidential aspirants at the villa,” another source in the Presidency said.
“The cabals don’t want Tinubu, Osibanjo or Amaechi.”
Jonathan was under pressure from the Aso Rock cabal to switch to the APC, according to Anaedoonline.ng.
Despite all the mud and calumny hurled at him and the PDP before the 2015 presidential election, which delivered Buhari a historic win over an incumbent, he was claimed to have stunned the Northern elite and cabal by his attitude toward the Buhari presidency.
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Some cabal members were also impressed that, despite the Buhari administration’s egregious failures, Jonathan had not publicly chastised his predecessor or his administration, unlike former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Obasanjo has written open letters denouncing the Buhari administration and vocally chastised it whenever he could.
According to insiders, Jonathan’s construction of ‘Almajiri’ schools in the North to lower the number of out-of-school children earned him brownie points with the northern cabal in the APC, especially since much of it is now withering away, even with a Northerner as president.
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