The protest took place at Taraba Close in the Maitama area of the Federal Capital Territory and caused noticeable traffic disruption as the youths marched, sang, danced, and held up placards appealing to the former president to return to active politics.
Some of the messages on their placards read, “GEJ: Nigeria is dying, save it!”, “GEJ, Nigerian youths don break the medicine wey dem do you,” and “GEJ, if you no run, we go quench.”
Speaking during the rally, the coalition’s National President, Tom Ohikere, said the group had spent the past six months consulting widely across the country before organizing the demonstration.
According to him, the demand for Jonathan’s return has been consistent everywhere they visited. He said the call for him to come back and help fix the nation’s challenges has been “loud and clear” throughout their engagements.
Ohikere described Jonathan as a leader capable of uniting Nigerians and tackling the country’s current political and economic difficulties. He also made it clear that the group would continue to mount pressure until the former president gives a response.
“We will keep coming until we hear from him,” he added.
Despite waiting for more than three hours, the protesters were unable to meet Jonathan, as he was reportedly away at the time. Sources, however, revealed that he arrived at the residence around 1 pm, shortly after the group had dispersed.
Naija Street Matters gathered that this latest demonstration is part of a growing wave of calls from both local and international groups encouraging Jonathan to re-enter partisan politics ahead of the 2027 elections.
This situation is similar to what happened in 2022, when several groups across Nigeria pushed for his candidacy ahead of the 2023 general elections. At the time, some northern youths and political figures even went as far as purchasing presidential nomination and expression of interest forms for him under the All Progressives Congress, despite his affiliation with the opposition party.
That move sparked serious debate about its legality and political consequences, especially considering Jonathan had already completed a full term after finishing the tenure of his predecessor, raising constitutional questions about his eligibility.
In the end, Jonathan chose not to contest, remaining silent for a period before eventually distancing himself from the campaign.
Although he has not made any official statement regarding the 2027 election, calls for his return to politics continue to resurface.
Since leaving office in 2015, Jonathan has largely stayed in the background, focusing on diplomatic roles and participating in election observation missions across Africa.
