he Federal High Court, Abuja Division, has fixed Friday May 8 for hearing of a suit seeking to disqualify former President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting presidency in 2027 or any future presidential elections.
Mr Jonathan on Thursday said he would consult widely on whether to contest the 2027 presidential election or not.
However, in a case marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, a lawyer, Johnmary Jideobi, asked the court to declare Mr Jonathan constitutionally ineligible to seek the country’s apex position, having being inaugurated as president twice in 2010 and 2011.
Mr Jonathan is listed as the first defendant in the suit, while the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Attorney-General of the Federation are named as second and third defendants respectively.
Justice Peter Lifu on April 28 ordered that hearing notices be served on the defendants after they failed to file their responses within the stipulated time.
Mr Jideobi is seeking an order restraining Mr Jonathan from further presenting himself to any political party as a candidate for any presidential election in Nigeria.
He argued that Mr Jonathan had exhausted the constitutional limit for an individual to be in office as president after being sworn-in to complete the tenure of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and subsequently being inaugurated in 2011 as president to serve a four-year term.
The lawyer also asked the court to stop the INEC from accepting, processing or publishing the former president’s name as a presidential candidate.
In the suit, the plaintiff asked the court to determine whether, based on Sections 1(1), (2), (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution, Mr Jonathan remains eligible under any circumstances to further contest for Nigeria’s presidency.
An affidavit filed in support of the suit by Emmanuel Agida stated that Mr Jonathan assumed office as president on May 6, 2010, after Mr Yar’Adua’s death.
Mr Agida noted that reports suggesting that Mr Jonathan might be interested in the 2027 presidential election informed the decision to approach the court to seek clarification.
The affidavit noted that if Mr Jonathan contests and wins a presidential election, he would be taking the presidential oath of office for the third time.
Mr Agida maintained that the suit was filed in the public interest, to uphold the supremacy of the constitution and preserve the integrity of Nigeria’s constitutional order.
“The plaintiff believes that the first defendant, having completed the unexpired term of late President Yar’Adua and subsequently served a full term after the 2011 election, has exhausted the constitutional limit of two tenures as president,” the affidavit stated.
The lawyer further argued that unless the court intervenes, any political party could nominate Mr Jonathan for the election in violation of constitutional provisions.
