JONATHAN KNOWS FATE ON ELIGIBILITY TODAY

May 26, 2026 • Dons Eze • 1 min read

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja will today, May 26, 2026, deliver its judgment in a suit seeking the disqualification of a former President, Goodluck Jonathan, from the 2027 presidential race.

Justice Peter Lifu will also give a definitive ruling on whether the former president can still take the oath of office after he had done so twice before leaving the office in 2015.

A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), under the leadership of Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, last week offered a waiver to Jonathan as the only presidential candidate of the party.

A plaintiff, Johnmary Jideobi, had instituted the suit seeking an order restraining former President Jonathan from presenting himself to any political party as a candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

Last week, Justice Lifu gave judgement date as today, Tuesday, May 26, 2026, after hearing the arguments canvassed by counsels to both plaintiff and the defendant.

The plaintiff had earlier asked the court to stop INEC from accepting, processing or publishing Jonathan’s name as a presidential candidate.

In the suit, he asked the court to determine whether, having regard to Sections 1(1), (2), (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution, Jonathan remains eligible to seek the office of president again.

Dons Eze

DONS EZE, PhD, Political Philosopher and Journalist of over four decades standing, worked in several newspaper houses across the country, and rose to the positions of Editor and General Manager. A UNESCO Fellow in Journalism, Dr. Dons Eze, a prolific writer and author of many books, attended several courses on Journalism and Communication in both Nigeria and overseas, including a Postgraduate Course on Journalism at Warsaw, Poland; Strategic Communication and Practical Communication Approach at RIPA International, London, the United Kingdom, among others.