The Federal High Court Abuja Tuesday held that former President Goodluck Jonathan is eligible to contest the 2027 presidential election.
Mr. Jonathan has been fiddling with the idea of running again for president after he was bundled out of office in 2015 by the ruling APC coalition, which had labelled him “clueless”, “incompetent” among other things.
The court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, said there is no legal barrier barring Jonathan from seeking a return to the Aso Villa.
According to Justice Lifu the issue of Jonathan’s eligibility had already been decided by the Court of Appeal.
He therefore dismissed as frivolous and an abuse of court process the suit that was entered against the former president by an Abuja-based legal practitioner, Mr Jideobi Johnmary.
The plaintiff lacked the locus standi (legal right) to institute the action.
The lawyer had, in his suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, queried Jonathan’s eligibility on the premise that he had already been sworn in as president on two occasions.
He had posed a lone question for the court to determine:
“Whether in view of the combined provisions of the entirety of Sections 1(1), (2) & (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended and their conflated interpretation, is the 1st Defendant eligible, under any circumstances [whatsoever], to contest for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?”
A cross section of the Nigerian media had reported that a faction of the crisis-ridden Peoples Demoratic Party had screened Jonathan as its sole presidential candidate.
Mr. Jonathan had yet to confirm the report.