A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, who is also councel to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, has stated that former President Goodluck Jonathan is not constitutionally barred from contesting the 2027 presidential election.
The legal opinion from Dr. M.O. Ubani, directly contradicts a recent statement made by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, who had asserted that Jonathan was ineligible to run again.
The debate centres on the interpretation of Section 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution, which was amended in 2018. The clause states: “A person who was sworn in to complete the term for which another person was elected as President shall not be elected to the office of President more than once.”
Jonathan became president in 2010 following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, whose term he completed. He then won the 2011 presidential election, serving a full term until 2015, when he lost his re-election bid to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Last week, Minister Keyamo, a former spokesman for the Buhari campaign, argued that the constitution bars Jonathan from another presidential run. He contended that ex president, having been elected once after completing his predecessor’s term, would be in breach of the two term limit if he sought office again.
However, in a detailed analysis, Dr Ubani challenged this view. He argued that the 2018 amendment cannot be applied retroactively to disqualify the former president, as it was enacted years after he had left office.
“The court held that Section 137(3) could not be applied retroactively to disqualify Jonathan,” Dr Ubani wrote, referencing a 2022 ruling by the Federal High Court in Yenagoa. “The 2018 amendment came into force long after he ceased to hold office, and retrospective interpretation is impermissible unless expressly provided.”
He further clarified that Jonathan’s assumption of office in 2010 was an act of constitutional succession, not an elected term.
“Nature abhors a vacuum, and Jonathan’s assumption of office in 2010 was by operation of law, not by electoral mandate,” he stated. “Therefore, that succession period cannot properly be counted as part of his elected tenure. In reality, Jonathan has only served one elected term.”
Dr Ubani, who has acted as legal counsel for Senate President Akpabio in past cases, emphasised that his analysis was strictly a clarification of constitutional law and not an endorsement of any candidate.
“My duty here is simply to state the law as it stands,” he noted.
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