JONATHAN LEGALLY ELIGIBLE TO RUN IN 2027 – ONOH REPLIES ONANUGA
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The former southeastern representative for President Bola Tinubu, Denge Josef Onoh, has stated that former President Goodluck Jonathan is constitutionally eligible to run for the Nigerian presidency in the 2027 election.
Onoh’s comments came in response to a statement made by President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Monday, in which he cautioned that Jonathan’s eligibility for the 2027 election could ultimately be determined by a court ruling.
However, Onoh disagreed with Onanuga, reminding him that the issue has already been resolved in Jonathan’s favor and cannot be reexamined unless it involves an unnecessary legal pursuit.
Onoh asserted that it is the prerogative of Nigerians to determine their leadership, emphasizing that the administration of President Bola Tinubu will not infringe upon any political opponent’s right to contest.
While speaking to reporters in Yenegoa, Bayelsa State, on Tuesday, after obtaining the certified true copy of the court ruling, Onoh reiterated that Jonathan’s eligibility regarding constitutional term limits is already established legal precedent, validated through uncontested judicial determinations affirming Jonathan’s capacity to participate in future elections.
“Therefore, President Tinubu should not be deceived by anyone telling him otherwise. This was exactly how Jonathan’s inner cabal during the build up to 2015 elections deceived him into believing that he was invisible, that Nigerians loved him, to the extent he was too carried away that he felt invisible and never saw Tinubu coming.
“Tinubu was the invisible magician that cast the spell that led to Jonathan’s loss at the polls. The President should not fall in the same trap by the voices that surround him now. The one major sincere voice he should listen to is his wife, many will betray him in the coming months,” Onoh remarked.
Onoh further noted that a binding and unappealed judgment delivered in May 2022 by the Federal High Court in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State (Suit No. FHC/YNG/CS/86/2022) rendered a conclusive ruling in a case filed by APC members Andy Solomon and Ibidiye Abraham against Jonathan, the APC, and INEC.
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In the ruling, Justice Isa H. Dashen maintained that Goodluck Jonathan is constitutionally qualified to run for the presidency of Nigeria once more.
The court reasoned that Jonathan’s assumption of office on May 6, 2010, following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, was not an election under Section 137(1)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), but rather a succession to complete Yar’Adua’s unexpired term, invoking the doctrine of necessity, and therefore does not count toward the two-term limit for elected officials.
Onoh clarified that Jonathan was elected only once, during the 2011 presidential election, and completed a full four-year term until 2015; his 2015 re-election attempt, despite his defeat at the polls, did not exhaust his constitutional eligibility.
“The 2018 constitutional amendment (via the Fourth Alteration Act), which added Section 137(3) to bar anyone sworn in twice from further contests, does not apply retroactively to Jonathan. The amendment postdated his tenures (2010–2015). It cannot retroactively disqualify rights accrued under the pre-amendment framework.”
Onoh asserted that retrospective laws are not permitted within Nigeria’s constitutional democracy, a tenet further substantiated by precedents such as the Court of Appeal’s 2015 decision in Cyriacus Njoku v. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (2015) LPELR-24496(CA), which likewise excluded his 2010 oath from term-counting assessments.
Onoh emphasized that the 2022 verdict was never contested by the plaintiffs or any other entity, despite the 90-day period stipulated by the Constitution and applicable electoral regulations. More than three years later (as of September 2025), the ruling remains conclusive and authoritative under the principle of res judicata—prohibiting the re-examination of identical issues between the same parties.
“Hence I urge Mr. President not to listen to anyone who comes to spin him with legal possibilities of Jonathan’s eligibility because Nigerian jurisprudence, including Supreme Court decisions like Marwa v. Nyako (2012) 6 NWLR (Pt. 1296) 200, upholds such precedents to ensure legal certainty and prevent endless challenges to settled rights.
With due respect to Mr. Onanuga, his invocation of future court scrutiny, while respectful of judicial authority, ignores this finality due to statute of limitations and finality hence any hypothetical challenger today would face dismissal for delay, as the core facts (Jonathan’s oaths and elections) are historical and were adjudicated in 2022.”
Onoh stated that the Supreme Court has continually decided against “stale” allegations that could have been appealed promptly (e.g. A. G. Federation v. A. G. Abia State (2001) 11 NWLR (Pt. 725) 689).
He additionally referenced a precedent from 2013, where a prior Federal High Court decision (Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/231/2013, Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi) exonerated Jonathan to run in 2015 which was also unappealed, forming the bedrock for the 2022 decision.
“This chain of unassailed judgments creates an impregnable legal shield. So, in my opinion, eligibility is a settled constitutional right, not open to political conjecture. I’m aware many critics in the past have framed opposition as a “risk” for parties fielding him, will face a disqualification, acknowledging the unresolved tension with the 2018 amendment, but the 2022 ruling resolves it in Jonathan’s favor.
“In essence, the matter is not pending a “jury” (or judiciary) trial; it was conclusively decided. Suggesting otherwise risks undermining judicial authority by implying courts must revisit final verdicts at political whim, eroding the stability essential to Nigeria’s electoral process.
“I owe Mr. President the truth before he’s betrayed again by politicians waving successful statistics around him without any knowledge of how Nigerians truly perceive your administration which isn’t encouraging at the moment but it’s within your powers to change the narratives to your favour.
“To honor the rule of law if Jonathan enters the 2027 race, I advise President Tinubu to engage on visions for economic revival, security, and unity, this elevates the conversation, respecting Jonathan’s cleared path while focusing on voters’ priorities. Nigeria’s democracy thrives when legal finality frees space for ideas, not recycled litigation,” Onoh said.
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