A claim that a former president of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan has endorsed President Bola Tinubu for 2027 presidential election has surfaced the internet and is particularly circulating on Facebook.
The claim was made in a Facebook post by a user News in Naija, the post noted that Jonathan has expressed confidence that President Bola Tinubu will win re-election in 2027 if he chooses to run.
The post added that the former president made this known while speaking in Seoul, South Korea, after receiving the 2025 Sunhak Peace Prize.
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The post read:
CLAIM
Goodluck Jonathan endorses Bola Tinubu for 2027 elections.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub shows that the claim is FALSE!
When we conducted a keyword search with the words “Daily Post Jonathan Tinubu Win 2027 election” findings showed that the Daily Post, the news outlet referenced in the viral image, did not publish any article making such a claim.
A thorough search of its official website on the said date returned no results supporting the alleged statement attributed to Jonathan.
Moreover, discrepancies in the image’s size and font observed by The FactCheckHub and compared to the Daily Post’s standard format suggest it was digitally altered or a manipulated headline
Additional findings confirmed that Goodluck Jonathan was indeed in South Korea last week, where he received the Sunhak Peace Prize at an official ceremony in Seoul.
Announcing the award on Friday, April 11 2025 via his X page, the former president described it as a recognition not just of his efforts, but also of the dedication of Nigerians and Africans who are committed to promoting peace and development.
This was widely reported by media outfits and no comments of him endorsing Tinubu was found in the reports or in the posts made on X.
The FactCheckHub conducted a keyword search using the terms “News Agency of Nigeria Jonathan Tinubu will win 2027 election” as referenced by the claimant in the post, but the results only led to more instances of the same viral content.
Additionally, the claim has been refuted by Goodluck Jonathan’s media aide. In a statement, the former president’s Special Adviser, Ikechukwu Eze, dismissed the online report as false.
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“The attention of the Media Office of His Excellency Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2010-2015) has been drawn to a piece of false information with the above title, currently spreading on a segment of the social media. This is fake news fabricated by agents of disinformation. At no point did Dr. Jonathan speak to any journalist on the forthcoming 2027 elections,” the statement read.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Goodluck Jonathan endorsed Bola Tinubu for the 2027 elections is FALSE; the headline circulating online was doctored, and although the former president was in Seoul to receive an honorary award, he made no such statement.
Seasoned fact-checker and researcher Fatimah Quadri has written numerous fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy pieces for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org.
