ABUJA, Nigeria — Former First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan has publicly ruled out any return to Aso Rock in the 2027 general elections, throwing her support behind President Bola Tinubu and First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu.
Speaking in Abuja on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at the Women Icon Leader of the Year award ceremony hosted by Accolade Dynamics Limited, Mrs Jonathan praised the President’s daughter, Folashade Tinubu-Ojo, and voiced strong backing for the current First Family.
“I’m not running. I’m not going back to the villa. If you call me, I will not go,” she said emphatically, addressing speculation about a possible political comeback.
“I believe in one president. I believe in turn-by-turn. When it’s your turn, I will support you. When it’s not your turn, step back, so that the country can move forward.”
Tinubu-Ojo, who holds the traditional title of Iyaloja-General of Nigeria, was honoured at the event attended by leading women across political and civic circles.
Dame Jonathan, who served as First Lady from 2010 to 2015 during the presidency of Goodluck Jonathan, used the occasion to highlight her long-standing relationship with the Tinubus and to urge unity among Nigerian women.
“All the way, we are with you. No shaking. We will follow. Direct us, and we will follow. Because there is only one president at a time. We don’t have two presidents,” she told the gathering.
Jonathan also recalled working with Oluremi Tinubu during her time as deputy governor’s wife and as First Lady, saying the First Lady and her husband supported the Jonathan campaign during the 2011 presidential election.
“I didn’t just know her because she’s the First Lady, no. We worked together. We worked as a group,” she said.
“Even when my husband was the vice president, Oluremi stood with her husband and supported us during our first election. They supported us. So, for me, I have a conscience. I cannot abandon my friend.”
She added, “My friend is great. I told her I would campaign with her. I’m not denying her.”
