‘Legal Mischief, Pure Abuse of Court Process’ — SAN Blasts Fresh Suit Challenging Jonathan’s 2027 Eligibility

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Oba Maduabuchi, has slammed the recent suit filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging the eligibility of former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential election, describing it as “an abuse of court process and a needless political gimmick.”

Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Tuesday, Maduabuchi said the case amounted to a waste of judicial time, as the matter had already been conclusively determined by a competent court in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.

He noted that the earlier judgment affirming Jonathan’s right to contest any future election remains valid and binding, since no appeal has been lodged against it.

> “That suit before the Federal High Court in Abuja is an abuse of court process,” Maduabuchi stated firmly. “An abuse of court process occurs when someone attempts to relitigate an issue that has already been decided by a competent court. The issue of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s qualification has been settled in Yenagoa, and until that judgment is set aside, it remains the law.”

The senior lawyer further argued that the 2018 constitutional amendment — specifically Section 137(3) — which bars a person who has completed another’s tenure from serving more than one additional term, does not apply to Jonathan, as it came into effect several years after he assumed office.

> “When Dr. Jonathan took the oath of office in 2010 to complete the tenure of the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Section 137(3) was not part of our laws,” Maduabuchi explained. “You cannot apply a 2018 amendment to a situation that occurred in 2010. The law does not operate retroactively.”

He insisted that Jonathan, who later won the 2011 presidential election, was constitutionally entitled to contest for a second full term in 2015 — and remains eligible to seek office again, should he choose to.

> “There was no legal restriction when Jonathan first became President. The amendment came much later, and cannot be used to disqualify him now,” he said. “Anyone attempting to do so is simply engaging in legal mischief.”



Maduabuchi cautioned politicians and litigants against using the courts for political showmanship, warning that frivolous lawsuits only erode confidence in the justice system.

> “Until the Yenagoa judgment is overturned, it stands as the correct interpretation of the law,” he concluded. “Dragging the courts into politically motivated suits is an embarrassment to the rule of law.”
Background

A fresh suit was recently filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking to disqualify former President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election on the grounds that he had previously served as President for more than one term.

However, legal experts, including constitutional lawyers and political analysts, have maintained that the 2018 amendment to the Constitution cannot be applied retrospectively, meaning Jonathan remains legally qualified to contest unless a superior court rules otherwise.