Former State Chief of Protocol (SCOP) under President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Ambassador Jameel Abubakar-Waziri has dismissed claims by Dr. Umar Ard
Former State Chief of Protocol (SCOP) under President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Ambassador Jameel Abubakar-Waziri has dismissed claims by Dr. Umar Ardo that the former President is not qualified to contest the forthcoming 2027 presidential election, citing what he termed “constitutional ineligibility”.
However, in his response to Ardo, Amb. Abubakar-Waziri declared that such position as misleading, stressing that both the Court of Appeal and a high court had in the past delivered ruling in favour of Jonathan’s eligibility.
Below are the details of Amb. Abubakar-Waziri’s response:
“My attention has been drawn to recent public statements credited to Umar Ardo concerning the constitutional eligibility of former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential election.
“Ordinarily, political opinions deserve little more than democratic tolerance. However, when such opinions are repeatedly presented to the public as settled constitutional facts, there becomes a compelling need to set the record straight in the interest of truth, constitutional order, and responsible public discourse.
“The issue of President Jonathan’s eligibility is neither new nor legally untested. Similar attempts were made prior to the 2015 presidential election to prevent him from contesting. The courts, after careful constitutional interpretation, ruled clearly in his favour, affirming that his assumption of office in 2010 following the unfortunate death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua constituted constitutional succession and not an elected presidential term. The Court of Appeal further clarified that President Jonathan’s first elected tenure commenced in 2011, thereby validating his eligibility to contest the 2015 election.
“Again, ahead of the 2023 election cycle, fresh legal arguments surfaced following the 2017 constitutional amendment relating to succession and presidential tenure. Yet, the Federal High Court sitting in Yenagoa ruled that the constitutional alteration could not be applied retroactively against President Jonathan. The court held firmly that laws and constitutional amendments cannot extinguish rights that existed before their enactment unless expressly stated otherwise.
“Importantly, these judgments remain valid and subsisting decisions of competent courts, having not been successfully overturned on appeal.
It is therefore deeply concerning that some political actors now seek to create public confusion by presenting personal interpretations as binding constitutional conclusions. In any constitutional democracy, no individual assumes the powers of judge, lawyer, and electoral umpire simultaneously. Questions of constitutional eligibility remain the exclusive preserve of competent courts of law and not media speculation or politically motivated commentary.
“The principle against retrospective application of laws is elementary in constitutional jurisprudence. The 2017 constitutional amendment contains no express provision indicating retroactive applicability to persons who served before the amendment came into effect. Consequently, any categorical assertion that President Jonathan is automatically barred from contesting in 2027 remains speculative, politically coloured, and legally inconclusive.
“While every citizen reserves the constitutional right to seek judicial interpretation, democratic responsibility equally demands intellectual honesty, restraint, and respect for judicial precedents. Public debate must not descend into deliberate distortion of settled legal principles for political convenience.
Until a competent court rules otherwise, no individual or political commentator possesses the authority to unilaterally declare Goodluck Ebele Jonathan ineligible for the 2027 presidential election.”