Can Goodluck Jonathan Become Nigeria's John Mahama?

The second President of the United States of America, John Adams words, "Destiny made me president", best describes John Mahama's political journey in Ghana. Mahama rode to the pinnacle of Ghana's politics by providence, hard work, dedication to public service and service to humanity.

Although John Mahama's story is peculiar, it shares some resounding semblance with that of Nigeria's Former President, Goodluck Jonathan, who, by providence, became the President following the death of his principal, Umaru Musa Yar'dua.

Yar'adua, Jonathan's principal, who left for Saudi Arabia to receive treatment for pericarditis, returned to Nigeria on February 24 2010 but tragically died on May 5 of the same. Following Yar'adua's death, Jonathan became Nigeria's 14th President.

John Maham's story is similar, but the events differ.

In what some will call a coincidence, John Mahatma became President in 2012 following the death of his principal, John Evans Fiifi Atta Mills, just a year after Jonathan became Nigeria's President under the same circumstances.

Born on July 21 1944, John Mills, who served as Ghana's President from 2009 until his passing in 2012, was sworn in on January 7 2009, after winning the 2008 presidential election.

Prior to his presidency, Mills served as Vice-President from 1997 to 2001 under President Jerry Rawlings and ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in both 2000 and 2004 as the National Democratic Congress (NDC) nominee. Mills was the first Ghanaian leader to die while in office.

John Mills passed away on July 24 2012, at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra, three days after his 68th birthday. The exact cause of death is still unclear as unconfirmed local media reports that he was battling throat cancer and had sought medical treatment in the United States.

On the same evening of Mills’ death, his vice president, John Dramani Mahama, was sworn in as the new president at approximately 20:00 GMT.

Jonathan and Mohama's Presidential election victory

Mahama’s party, the National Democratic Congress, NDC, selected him as the flag bearer of the December 2012 election following the expiration of the 2009 administration.  

Defeating his closest rival of the New Patriotic Party, NPC, Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Mahama was sworn in as President on January 7 2013, at the Black Star Square in Accra. 

Although Akufo-Addo, who was defeated by 50.7%, pulled 47.74% votes, contested the outcome of the election, citing electoral fraud, Ghana’s Supreme Court in August 2013 dismissed the suit and upheld Mahama’s victory. 

Mahama will later lose the December 2016 election, where Akufo-Addo defeated him. 

Still sharing a similar political trajectory, Goodluck Jonathan, like his Ghana counterpart, contested the 2010 presidential election under the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and won by 58.89%, defeating Mohammadu Buhari of the Congress for Progressive Change, who pulled 31.9% votes. 

Failed Re-Election Bid: Jonathan and Mahama's Story Unfold

Jonathan and Mahama lost their first bid for a second term in office. Jonathan in 2015, which he deemed the most challenging moment of his life. Mahama in 2016. However, the latter, not taking a bow yet, contested the 2024 election again under the NDC and according to the NDC spokesperson, Sammy Gyumri, confirmed their internal result review showed that Maham won with 56.3%, and his opponent, Bawumia polled 41.3%. 

Confirming the report, President Muhamudu Bawumia, in a news conference on Sunday, said, “The People have voted for change at this time, and we respect it with all humility.”

Many world leaders, including Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, have greeted Mahama on his heroic comeback after his 2016 defeat. 

It's no news that unconfirmed reports of Jonathan recontesting the election spiralled throughout the 2023 elections; however, several political parties, including the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, have fanned those reports again with denials and counter-denials of picking the former Governor of Bayelsa as their running mate. 

With these growing calls for Jonathan’s comeback to power since 2023, 2027 might witness a heightened call as the posters of him contesting the 2027 election have been making rounds on social media. In the words of John Adams, if destiny permits, we might see a Mahama in Jonathan in Nigeria soon.