Political drama is brewing in the Niger Delta as former President Goodluck Jonathan faces sustained pressure to abandon his rumoured 2027 presidential comeback and throw his weight behind President Bola Tinubu’s re-election, MUK TV has learned.
At the centre of the push is former militant leader Chief Government Ekpemupolo, better known as Tompolo, who reportedly led a powerful delegation to Jonathan’s country home in Otuoke, Bayelsa State, on October 16.
Tompolo, accompanied by Chief Kestin Pondi, Managing Director of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL), and Mr. Joshua Maciver, the APC Deputy Governorship candidate in the 2023 Bayelsa election, was said to have personally appealed to the ex-president to drop his political ambitions.
Sources told Vanguard that the meeting was “purely political,” orchestrated at convincing Jonathan to shelve his 2027 plans and back Tinubu for a second term.
“Tompolo came to see His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, in Otuoke, on Friday, October 16, in what was a happy reunion after over a decade. Contrary to reports that the visit was about peace and security in the Niger Delta, it was purely political.
Tompolo appealed to the former president to shelve his rumoured presidential bid in 2027.
He advised him not to be swayed by suggestions that he could unseat President Tinubu, noting that public sentiment across the Niger Delta and much of Nigeria currently favours Tinubu’s re-election,” a source revealed.
Insiders said Jonathan listened quietly and acknowledged Tompolo’s counsel, promising to think it through before declaring his position publicly.
After the closed-door meeting, Jonathan told journalists that Tompolo’s visit was to “review the prevailing peace in the Niger Delta,” neither confirming nor denying the alleged political discussions.
