…Shehu Sani insists the PDP of today is unrecognisable compared to what it once was during Jonathan’s tenure.
ABUJA, NIGERIA – The iNews Times | Former senator and social critic, Shehu Sani, has urged ex-President Goodluck Jonathan not to consider contesting in the 2027 presidential election, warning that the political landscape, particularly within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has fundamentally shifted.
Shehu Sani made the statement on Sunday while speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s programme Sunday Politics. He cautioned the former president against harbouring hopes of a political comeback, insisting that the PDP of today is unrecognisable compared to what it once was during Jonathan’s tenure.
“Each time there is an election, the name of Jonathan comes up,” Sani said. “But it is his volition to contest. However, I advise him not to do that.”
He elaborated further, citing deep internal shifts within the PDP that, in his view, make the party a poor platform for a serious presidential bid. “The reason is very simple: the PDP he used to know is not the PDP now. The PDP in the South-West is endorsing the president. Some members of the party are in the coalition. So, it is not the party he used to know, and he shouldn’t waste his time,” Sani stated.
The remarks come amid renewed speculation about the political future of Jonathan, who has remained a recurring name in discussions around national leadership, despite having left office a decade ago.
Shehu Sani’s comments reflect growing divisions within the PDP, as well as the shifting alliances that have characterised Nigerian politics in the run-up to 2027. While no official statement has been issued by Jonathan in response to the advisory, the former president has in the past kept his political intentions closely guarded.
As the 2027 election season gradually builds momentum, the question of who will emerge as the key opposition figure remains open and increasingly complex.