"I can spend more than 8 years in office and eligible to contest 2015 Presidential Elections" - GEJ

As insinuation over his possible intention to seek re-election in 2015 mounts, President Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, told a Federal High Court in Abuja that contrary to the provision of the 1999 constitution, the tenure of an incumbent president can extend beyond four or eight years.

President Jonathan, who adduced the argument while responding to a fresh suit seeking to bar him from vying for presidency in 2015, maintained that those who were contesting his possible bid in the next presidential election, had failed to canvass any valid reason why he cannot contest.

The fresh suit was filed against him by a Port Harcourt-based legal practitioner, Henry Amadi, who is equally a card carrying member of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

The plaintiff is contending that Jonathan is not eligible to contest in 2015 on the grounds that by so doing he would be spending more than the maximum period of two terms of four years envisaged by the 1999 constitution.

The suit is similar to the previous one filed by another member of the PDP, Mr Cyriacus Njoku, on March 20, 2012 before an Abuja High Court, which is equally seeking to stop Jonathan from contesting in 2015 on the premise that he is already in his second term in office.

However, in his counter affidavit to the plaintiff’s originating summons, Jonathan averred that he took the first oath of office on May 6, 2010, following Yar’Adua’s death.

Jonathan asked the court to dismiss the suit on the grounds that the plaintiff had no locus standi to ask the court to stop him from running for office in 2015. He described the plaintiff’s claims as “hypothetical and academic”, noting that he failed to disclose reasonable cause of action.