COURT ADJOURNS SUIT SEEKING TO BAR JONATHAN FROM 2027 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

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By Aishat Momoh. O.

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has adjourned until May 11, 2026, a suit seeking to disqualify former President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election.

Justice Peter Lifu adjourned the matter on Friday after counsel to the plaintiff, Ndubuisi Ukpai, informed the court that he had only recently been served with a preliminary objection filed by the defence and required time to respond.

The suit seeks judicial interpretation of whether Jonathan is constitutionally eligible to contest for the presidency again under the provisions of the 1999 Constitution.

Proceedings, however, took an early turn when Jonathan’s counsel, Chris Uche, told the court that he first became aware of the case through media reports and had since been working to ensure all necessary legal processes on behalf of the former president were properly filed.

Uche also drew the court’s attention to previous judgments delivered by both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal on similar issues concerning Jonathan’s eligibility, questioning why the matter had resurfaced.

The Independent National Electoral Commission and the Attorney-General of the Federation, who are listed as second and third respondents respectively, were not represented during the proceedings.

After listening to submissions from parties involved, Justice Lifu ordered that hearing notices be properly served on all respondents ahead of the next adjourned date.

The suit was instituted by a lawyer, Johnmary Jideobi, who is asking the court to declare Jonathan constitutionally ineligible to contest for the presidency again.

The plaintiff is also seeking an order restraining the former president from presenting himself to any political party as a presidential candidate for the 2027 general election, as well as an order preventing INEC from accepting or publishing his name as a candidate.

At the centre of the legal dispute is the interpretation of Sections 1(1), (2) and (3), as well as Section 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution.

The plaintiff is specifically asking the court to determine whether Jonathan can, under any circumstances, contest again for the office of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Jideobi argued that Jonathan had already exhausted the constitutional limit for the office after completing the tenure of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua following his death in 2010 and subsequently winning and serving a fresh four-year term after the 2011 presidential election.

In an affidavit supporting the suit, Emmanuel Agida stated that the action became necessary following reports suggesting that Jonathan might be considering another presidential bid in 2027.

According to the plaintiff, allowing Jonathan to contest and possibly win the election would amount to him taking the presidential oath of office for a third time, which he argued is prohibited by the Constitution.

Justice Lifu had earlier, on April 28, directed that hearing notices be served on all parties after observing that some respondents were yet to file their responses in the matter.

The court is expected to revisit the constitutional eligibility question when proceedings resume on May 11.