Dele Farotimi questions Jonathan’s 2027 aspiration: How do you rebrand a 2015 failure for 2027?

Human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, has said bringing back former President Goodluck Jonathan will not solve Nigeria’s problems. He believes the country needs deep changes to its system, not just a change in leadership.

Farotimi was reacting to talk that Jonathan might return to politics ahead of the 2027 elections. He said the idea is a mistake.

“A thousand Goodluck Ebele Jonathans cannot solve the problems of Nigeria. They might as well go ahead to increase his brain powers by factors of a thousand for good measure. If we do not address our structural problems and tell ourselves the basic truths we owe to ourselves, nothing is going to change,” he said.

He reminded people that Jonathan was removed from office years ago after many believed it would make Nigeria better, but the problems still remain.

“They can recycle all these people as many times as they care. This was the same Jonathan that was horribly vilified and labelled. The press, the pulpit, and the mosque all said his removal would solve our problems, and here we are,” he said.

Farotimi also said that removing the current president, Bola Tinubu, will not make a difference unless the system that produces bad leaders is changed.

“If you removed Bola Ahmed Tinubu from office today, and you do not touch that evil system that has produced the kind of people who have ruined the country, all this talk about Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is just more distraction from the political ‘ruining’ class,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to focus on building strong institutions and lasting reforms instead of hoping for a political “messiah.”

“It’s about building enduring systems. How do you rebrand a failure of 2015 into a saint and saviour in 2025? Ten years have gone full cycle, and we’re back saying we were better off where we were,” he added.