Jonathan challenges suit over eligibility for 2027 presidential election

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has challenged a lawsuit seeking to bar him from the 2027 presidential election, filed by a lawyer, Johnmary Jideobi.

Jonathan, in a preliminary objection filed by his lawyer, Chris Uche (SAN), to challenge Jideobi’s originating summons, prayed Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court to dismiss the suit for want of jurisdiction.

The former president said the suit was purely speculative, founded on conjecture, premature, and predicated on media speculation, stating that there was no nomination, election, and cause of action.

He said: “The court lacks jurisdiction to entertain hypothetical constitutional questions.

“The suit constitutes a gross abuse of court process, aimed at obtaining a pre-emptive political judgement.

“Cosmetic joinder of second and third
defendants is a mere jurisdictional artifice.”

Jonathan noted that the issues raised had already been judicially settled by a subsisting judgement of the Federal High Court in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State.

The former president, therefore, sought an order striking out the suit for want of jurisdiction and as constituting a gross abuse of court process.

The preliminary objection, marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, was filed on May 5 by Uche.

The application was brought in line with Section 251 of the 1999 Constitution and under the inherent jurisdiction of the court.

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In the affidavit in support of the application deposed to by Emmanuel Tsebo, a litigation manager in the law fint of Chris Uche, SAN & Co, he said Jonathan was first sworn in as president in 2010 to compete the tenure of his predecessor.

He stated: “That the first defendant (Jonathan) was thereafter duly elected as president in the 2011 general election.

“That the first defendant completed his tenure in 2015.”

Tsebo stated that Jonathan had “not been elected as president more than once.”

He said the plaintiff (Jideobi) had no personal interest or legal right whatsoever and was not affected by the subject matter of the suit.

The judge adjourned the matter until May 11 for hearing of the former president’s objection and the substantive suit.

He ordered all the parties to file and serve their processes before the next adjourned date.