Court Clears Goodluck Jonathan to Run in 2027 Election

By Victor Idajili

A Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that former President Goodluck Jonathan is eligible to contest the 2027 presidential election.

The case was brought by lawyer Johnmary Jideobi, who asked the court to stop Jonathan from running and to bar INEC from accepting his name as a candidate. Jideobi argued that Sections 1 and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution disqualified Jonathan from seeking another term.

But Justice Peter Lifu dismissed the suit, saying Jonathan can run. He also ruled that Jideobi had no legal standing to file the case since he hadn’t suffered any direct loss from Jonathan’s potential candidacy.

The judge fined Jideobi ₦20 million to be paid to Jonathan, and ₦1 million to be paid to the Attorney-General of the Federation. He described the suit as an abuse of court process.

Justice Lifu noted that a Federal High Court in Yenagoa and the Court of Appeal had already ruled on Jonathan’s eligibility, and said he was bound by that decision. He also threw out Jideobi’s request for the judge to step aside from the case, calling it frivolous.

The ruling comes after a PDP faction led by Kabiru Tanimu Turaki last week offered Jonathan a waiver to run as the party’s sole presidential candidate.