Court Asked to Dismiss Suit Seeking to Bar Jonathan From 2027 Presidential Race

Former President Goodluck Jonathan and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, have urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a suit seeking to stop Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election.

Justice Peter Lifu fixed May 26 for a composite judgment in the matter, including a ruling on an application filed by the plaintiff, Abuja-based lawyer Johnmary Jideobi, asking the judge to recuse himself over alleged bias.

In the suit, Jideobi is asking the court to determine whether Jonathan is constitutionally qualified to contest the presidency again, citing Sections 1(1), (2) and (3), alongside Section 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution.

The plaintiff argued that Jonathan had already exhausted the constitutional limit after completing the tenure of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua following his death in 2010, before subsequently winning and serving another full term after the 2011 presidential election.

According to an affidavit deposed to by Emmanuel Agida on behalf of the plaintiff, Jonathan first took the oath of office as president on May 6, 2010, and was sworn in again on May 29, 2011, after emerging victorious in the general election.

Jideobi also accused the court of bias, alleging that the initial 14 days granted to respond to Jonathan’s counter-affidavit and preliminary objection were later shortened, prompting his request for Justice Lifu to withdraw from the case.

However, counsel to Jonathan, Chris Uche (SAN), asked the court to dismiss the suit and award N50 million in costs against the plaintiff.

Uche argued that previous suits challenging Jonathan’s eligibility had already been dismissed by the courts, including cases instituted by Andy Solomon and Cyracus Njoku.

He further maintained that the constitutional amendment contained in Section 137(3), which bars anyone who has taken the presidential oath more than twice from contesting again, could not be applied retroactively against Jonathan.

According to him, the plaintiff was attempting to deploy litigation as a political weapon to exclude Jonathan from the democratic process.

“He has no locus standi to bring this action and no cause of action has crystallised,” Uche told the court.

The senior lawyer also argued that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate how the matter directly affected him or establish that he was a registered voter with a legal interest in the outcome.

Also representing the Federal Government, the Director of Civil Litigation and Public Law at the Federal Ministry of Justice, Dr. Maimuna Lamin Shiru, urged the court to dismiss the suit in its entirety.

But counsel to the plaintiff, Ndubuisi Ukpai, countered that being a registered voter was not a legal requirement for instituting the case and asked the court to reject the objections and counter-affidavits filed by Jonathan and the Ministry of Justice.