Group Hails Moves To Draft Jonathan Into 2023 Presidential Race, “It’ll Entrench Equity, Justice In Nigeria”, It Says 

The reported move by some elders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to draft former President Gooluck Ebele Jonathan to the APC has been applauded by the Goodluck Jonathan 2023 Organisation, even as the group described the plan as a genuine way of allowing equity to have a strong root in Nigeria.

“It is also a better way of giving the people of the South-south region their complete eight-year tenure”, the group declared.

In a statement in Umuahia, Abia State capital on Friday, March 25, 2022, the National Coordinator of the group, Mazi Chukwudike Abraham and National Legal Adviser, Barr Godwin Ogbonna argued that for interest of equity, the South-south should be allowed to complete its eight years in Aso Rock before the baton will shift to the Southeast region.

The Goodluck Jonathan 2023 Organisation maintained that the Fourth Republic has produced Nigerian leaders from Southwest in the person of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo who held sway as nation’s President for eight, the current President, Muhammadu Buhari, from the Northwest, eight years, pointing out only Jonathan from the South-south as President ran Nigeria for four years.

“Therefore, for reason of equity, justice and fairness, Good luck Jonathan should be allowed to complete eight years in Aso Rock, thereafter the baton will shift to the Southeast which has not occupied the seat.

“What we want is Jonathan’s Presidency that will level up for the turn for the South-south so that any region that will occupy the Presidency will do so for eight years. This will bring peace and unity in the polity.

“We believe that Goodluck Jonathan is still young and vibrant unlike Atiku Abubakar of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in terms of experience and international reorganization. Remember, he’s also an in-law of Ndigbo who will make Ndigbo to smile at the end of his tenure and will, if elected, implement the 14 Confab report”, the statement added.

Both Abraham and Ogbonna recalled the statesman position of Jonathan in 2021, calling for the straightening of the nation’s electoral laws in such a way that only the ballot paper and not the courts is allowed to determined the winners of the elections.

“The former President stressed then that the standard practice is that the electoral management body should exercise the sole responsibility of returning candidates and declaring winners while the judiciary compliments it by either upholding declared results or notifying flawed elections and ordering a rerun.

“This is indeed what amended Electoral Act seeks to implement.

“This is the mind of a visionary leader who wants to patriotically change the face of Nigeria for the better. We, in the Goodluck Jonathan for 2023 Organisation also share the view that our laws should suppress the issues of the judiciary returning candidates.

“We believe that the ballot papers should decide who holds any elective office from the councillorship the Presidency”, they submitted.