BREAKING: Court Dismisses Suit Seeking To Stop Jonathan From Contesting 2027 Presidency

Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan

BREAKING: Court Dismisses Suit Seeking To Stop Jonathan From Contesting 2027 Presidency

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday dismissed a suit seeking to bar former President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election.

The suit, filed by legal practitioner Johnmary Jideobi, had asked the court to declare Jonathan ineligible to seek the presidency again on the grounds that he had already taken the oath of office twice as President of Nigeria.

Delivering judgment, Justice Peter Lifu struck out the case, describing it as an abuse of court process. The judge also awarded financial sanctions against the plaintiff for instituting what the court considered a frivolous suit.

The plaintiff had argued that Jonathan’s assumption of office following the death of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2010, and his subsequent election in 2011, amounted to two terms in office, thereby making him constitutionally ineligible to contest again.

According to the suit, Section 137(1)(b) of the Nigerian Constitution disqualifies any person who has been elected to the office of President at any two previous elections from seeking another term.

However, counsel to Jonathan urged the court to dismiss the suit, arguing that the constitutional amendment being relied upon by the plaintiff could not be applied retroactively against the former president.

Jonathan’s legal team further maintained that courts had previously addressed similar issues and ruled that the ex-president remained eligible under the law.

The court agreed with the defence and held that the matter lacked merit, leading to the dismissal of the case.

The judgment is expected to further fuel political discussions surrounding Jonathan’s possible return to active presidential politics ahead of the 2027 general election, although the former president has not publicly declared any intention to contest.

Jonathan served as Nigeria’s President between 2010 and 2015 after completing the tenure of Yar’Adua and later winning the 2011 presidential election. He lost his re-election bid in 2015 to former President Muhammadu Buhari.