Amidst attempt by loyalists of Goodluck Jonathan to stop him from running on the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket, the former president has met with the national chairman of the ruling party, Abdullahi Adamu, in Abuja.
Jonathan, reports say, wanted to clarify some grey areas regarding his candidacy.
The former president, who was reported to have rejected a N100 million nomination form procured for him by some Fulani pastoralists, later met Adamu behind closed doors.
A source close to the former president said that the meeting lasted between 9 pm and 10 pm and was focused on sorting out some grey issues regarding Jonathan’s bid to fly the party’s presidential flag in 2023.
It was learnt that the confusion that trailed the purchase of the form for Jonathan arose because of the spirited efforts by his core loyalists in the People Democratic Party (PDP) to dissuade him from joining the APC.
Jonathan’s loyalists believes that such development would impact negatively on the former president’s image and on the electoral chances of the PDP.
Jonathan had concluded plans to accept the nomination form and meet with the APC leadership since Sunday morning but was strongly prevailed upon by those seen as his ‘inner caucus friends’ to shelve the move, Vanguard reported citing an unnamed source.
“These people have been pressurising Jonathan until the very last minute not to accept to run on the APC ticket no matter how tempting the conditions may be,” the source was quoted to have said.
“That was why the former president did not present himself to the APC national chairman on Sunday when the form was to be formally presented to him by the Almajiri who want to show him appreciation for what he did for them during his tenure by building schools and rehabilitating them.
“The main argument of those opposed to Jonathan running on the APC ticket is that it would be belittling to his image and standing in the world for him to do so given where he had been and what he represents as a former president of Nigeria.
“But the point is that the deadline for picking the form is this week and if he does not accept the form, the window would be closed and the opportunity lost.
“That was why the former president had to meet Adamu last night (Monday) and their meeting was very productive as both men came out happily at the end of the one-hour meeting in Adamu’s house in Abuja.”
It will be recalled that following the purchase of the form for Jonathan, his media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, had described the action as insulting and unacceptable to Jonathan, saying that he was not consulted.
Also, Reno Omokri, a loyalist who worked with the Jonathan presidency, dismissed speculations that Jonathan would join the APC.
“Former President Jonathan has nothing to do with the reported purchase of some forms. He has an official spokesman and his own staff. He is a man of honour and will not do anything surreptitiously. The media and the public should be guided,” Omokri said.
But another source said Monday night that Jonathan was moving ahead with the plan to run on the APC ticket, with the party’s presidential primary holding later this month.
