Director General of the Tinubu Support Group, Umar Yakasai, has declared that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has nothing to fear from the possible return of former President Goodluck Jonathan to the presidential race, insisting Nigerians have not forgotten the failures of his administration.
In an interview with ARISE NEWS on Thursday, Yakasai argued that Jonathan’s record of economic hardship, insecurity, and corruption scandals remained fresh in the minds of voters and would weaken rather than strengthen any political comeback bid.
“President Goodluck Jonathan was in government for six years, and Nigerians rejected him in 2015 despite all his policies. I don’t think his candidature will be anything to worry about as far as the APC is concerned,” Yakasai said.
He recalled how the Jonathan years were defined by insecurity, corruption, and mismanagement.
“To travel from Abuja to Kaduna under Jonathan, you would spend almost 12 hours on a five-hour journey because of over 30 checkpoints. Nigerians were consistently embarrassed. You also remember the $2.1 billion arms deal—those cases are still on. Billions of dollars were removed, and we will continue to remind Nigerians of these lessons,” he added.
In the 2027 elections, Yakasai insisted that the North in particular would not return to Jonathan, recalling its consistent rejection of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the past.
“The North has not forgotten. Even when the PDP was in power, the region consistently gave over 10 million votes to Buhari. Memories are still fresh,” he stressed.
Defending President Bola Tinubu’s reforms, Yakasai admitted the subsidy removal and currency floatation initially caused hardship but claimed the economy had since stabilised.
“Within the last two years, the president and his team have been able to stabilise the economy. Inflation, which spiked in 2023, has come back to 2023 levels in 2025. That shows the economy is working,” he said.
He further pointed to Tinubu’s support for the Dangote Refinery, crediting it for recent reductions in petrol prices, while emphasising that the government would not allow a monopoly in the oil sector.
On insecurity, Yakasai acknowledged ongoing challenges in northern states, including displaced farmers in Benue, but insisted Tinubu’s government was handling the crisis better than previous administrations.
“Today, despite challenges, you no longer have the kind of humiliations Nigerians faced during Jonathan’s time,” he said.
He concluded that the APC was prepared to counter any opposition narrative by replaying the Jonathan-era failures.
“If anybody contemplates bringing Goodluck Jonathan into this contest, all I need to do is replay those years for Nigerians to remember,” Yakasai warned.
