A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has thrown out a lawsuit seeking to stop former President Goodluck Jonathan from contesting the 2027 presidential election.
Delivering judgment on Tuesday, Justice Peter Lifu ruled that the plaintiff, JohnMary Jideobi, lacked the legal standing to file the case because he failed to show how Jonathan’s alleged presidential ambition had personally affected him.
The court also imposed a N20 million fine on Jideobi in favour of the former president, alongside an additional N1 million penalty payable to the Attorney-General of the Federation.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, Jideobi had asked the court to prevent Jonathan from participating in the 2027 presidential race.
The lawyer argued that Jonathan had already completed the tenure of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua before winning the 2011 presidential election for another full term, insisting that the former president had exhausted the constitutional two-term limit.
He also sought an order stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission from accepting or publishing Jonathan’s name as a candidate in 2027 or any future presidential election.
However, Justice Lifu noted that previous rulings by both a Federal High Court in Yenagoa and the Court of Appeal had already affirmed Jonathan’s eligibility to contest for president.
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According to the judge, those decisions remain valid and binding on the court.
Lifu described the lawsuit as “an abuse of court process”.
The judge also dismissed a separate application filed by Jideobi requesting that he withdraw from handling the case, describing the motion as frivolous.