Former President Goodluck Jonathan has not obtained the Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential nomination form, the PDP South-East Vice Chairman, Barrister Ray Nnaji, has clarified.
Speaking during a programme on Enugu-based Dream FM on Wednesday, Nnaji dismissed reports suggesting that Jonathan had secured the party’s form, describing the claims as political games being played in the former president’s name.
According to him, although Jonathan previously stated that he was consulting widely, he has not publicly declared his intention to contest the 2027 presidential election.
“Jonathan has not announced that he is running, yet some people are already claiming he has been screened. These are all gimmicks aimed at creating impressions. The court case is only being used to show that he is qualified to contest if he chooses to. Some individuals are exploiting the situation for financial gain, which amounts to a criminal act. Anyone can verify the authentic information on the INEC website,” Nnaji stated.
He further advised the former president against joining the presidential race, warning that such a move could damage the reputation he earned after peacefully handing over power following his defeat as an incumbent president.
Nnaji also addressed reports surrounding the emergence of parallel governorship candidates within the PDP in Enugu State, insisting that the party remains united and has no factions in the state.
He explained that both Samson Chukwu Nnamani and former Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji, purchased nomination forms and successfully passed the party’s screening process ahead of the governorship primaries.
However, he alleged that Samson Nnamani later violated provisions of the party’s constitution through public statements and publications deemed hostile to the PDP.
According to him, petitions were subsequently filed against Nnamani, but he failed to appear before the party to defend himself when summoned.
“The party suspended him, but instead of appealing the suspension, he allegedly organised some individuals to announce the suspension of another aspirant. Despite that, the national leadership of the PDP supervised the primary election in Enugu State, and Samson Nnamani lost,” he said.
Nnaji added that the governorship primaries were conducted by an Abuja-appointed panel led by Austin Nwachukwu from Imo State, stressing that the party leadership did not recognise the group allegedly led by one Wisdom Okoye.
He stated that the names of candidates who emerged from the officially recognised primaries, including that of Uche Nnaji, had already been forwarded to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.