KUKAH TO JONATHAN: “LISTEN VERY CAREFULLY”

“Voice of the devil not far from God” — Sokoto Bishop warns former president as 2027 whispers grow
ACCRA, Ghana — Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, on Wednesday praised former President Goodluck Jonathan’s refusal to cling to power in 2015 as a defining act of democratic sacrifice — but he issued a blunt warning as calls grow for a possible 2027 comeback.

Speaking at the Democracy Dialogue of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation, Kukah described Mr. Jonathan’s decision to concede in 2015 as “one of those moments between yourself, your conscience and your God,” and said the act restored hope and dignity to Nigerian democracy.

“On March 31, 2015, even before the elections had concluded, when you made that call, you were answering what to me was more or less a divine call,” Kukah told the audience. “By taking that decision you showed the honour, the dignity and the sense of sacrifice that democracy demands.”

But the bishop’s praise came with a stern caveat. Quoting former Defence Minister General Theophilus Danjuma, Kukah warned the former president to beware of flattering voices and hidden agendas.

> “The voice of the devil is not so far from the voice of God. Listen very carefully to those who want to use you as an instrument for the elongation of their interests, and not your interests or the interests of Nigeria.”



Kukah urged Jonathan to reflect deeply, pray and let conscience and the national interest guide any decision about returning to active politics. He said his own attendance at the Accra event — cutting short a meeting of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria — was a sign of personal respect for Jonathan’s historic choice.

“Think very clearly. Pray very clearly. Final decision — it’s your call,” the bishop said, underscoring that statesmanship demands both courage and caution.

The intervention frames a moral crossroads for Mr. Jonathan: celebrated for a moment that many view as pivotal for Nigeria’s democracy, yet now being counseled to resist becoming the tool of others’ ambitions if he considers a political return.

Our Correspondent