Former President Goodluck Jonathan has challenged a lawsuit filed by lawyer Johnmary Jideobi seeking to prevent him from contesting the 2027 presidential election.
Jonathan, through his counsel, Chief Chris Uche (SAN), informed Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja that the former president had filed a conditional appearance, a preliminary objection, a counter-affidavit and a written address asking the court to dismiss the suit.
According to Uche, the legal team became aware of the case through media reports and moved quickly to respond because of the significance of the matter, which concerns Jonathan’s eligibility to participate in the 2027 presidential race.
The senior advocate argued that it was surprising for a lawyer to institute such an action when similar issues had already been determined by both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Ndubuisi Ukpai, told the court that the matter was scheduled for mention and that he had only just been served with Jonathan’s legal processes. He therefore requested more time to study and respond to the filings.
Following submissions from both parties, Justice Lifu adjourned the case until May 11 at 2pm for the hearing of Jonathan’s objection and the substantive suit.
The court also directed that hearing notices be issued and served on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), who are listed as the second and third defendants but were absent from court proceedings.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, was filed by Jideobi on October 6, 2025. The plaintiff is asking the court to issue a perpetual injunction barring Jonathan from seeking nomination from any political party for the 2027 presidential election.
He further urged the court to stop INEC from accepting or publishing Jonathan’s name as a candidate in the election, citing constitutional provisions to support his argument.
Further proceedings in the case are expected on May 11.
