President Goodluck Jonathan

A Federal High Court in Kaduna has confirmed on Monday that President Goodluck Jonathan is qualified to seek re-election in the 2015 general elections.

Two leaders of Peoples Democratic Party, Richard Mneaga, and Shuaibu Lill, in a suit filed in October 2013, had insisted that Jonathan had completed eight years in office as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria calculated from May 29, 2007, and therefore sought for “a declaration that President Jonathan is not entitled to tenure of office as President exceeding eight years calculated from 2007, till last holder of the said office” and for the court to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to restrain the PDP from accepting nomination of Jonathan as its presidential candidate in the 2015 election.

The presiding judge, Justice Evelyn Anyadike said the plaintiffs lacked the locus standi to drag President Jonathan to court based on section 308 of the Constitution which gives him immunity not to sue or be sued, and therefore affirmed that Jonathan has the constitutional right to contest for presidency in 2015 if he so desire. She also said the court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the matter since the plaintiffs did not follow the due process of filing their case, saying the petition was served out of jurisdiction. She dismissed the case for lack of merit.

In his reaction to the judgement, Counsel to the plaintiffs, Mohammed Ibrahim, expressed his disappointment in the court for throwing out the case relying on technicalities instead of looking at the matter from its merit. He has expressed his readiness to proceed to the Appeal Court.