Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has said former President Goodluck Jonathan cannot contest for president again under Nigeria’s constitution.
Naija News reports that Keyamo spoke during an interview with Vanguard on Sunday, where he addressed the leadership crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the growing talks about Jonathan possibly returning to the presidential race.
According to the minister, Jonathan’s chances of contesting are already blocked by constitutional provisions, adding that any attempt to return to the ballot would likely fail at the Supreme Court.
He also linked the issue to the internal division in the PDP, especially the faction led by Kabir Turaki. Keyamo argued that the faction lacks the legal backing required to present candidates for elections, making the situation even more difficult for the former president.
The minister said Jonathan was being connected to a PDP structure that may not even be recognised legally, adding that pursuing such a ticket would only create more political problems for him.
Jonathan first became president in 2010 after the death of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. He later won the 2011 presidential election and remained in office until 2015.
“Jonathan is not constitutionally eligible to run, it is as simple as that. The Supreme Court will most likely disqualify him. And I think he knows because they are dangling the ticket of the PDP that does not exist in law before him, the Turaki-led PDP that cannot field candidates. That is double tragedy for him. But I think they just want to participate in an academic exercise,” he said.
Legal debates over Jonathan’s eligibility have continued for years because he completed Yar’Adua’s unfinished tenure before serving another full four-year term.
Many constitutional lawyers have argued that the two-term limit in the 1999 Constitution prevents him from seeking the presidency again.
