By John Azu
A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed November 20 for a ruling on an application by former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to amend processes in his suit challenging President Bola Tinubu’s eligibility to contest the 2027 presidential election over an alleged forged academic record.
Justice Inyang Ekwo fixed the date on Tuesday after lawyers to the parties presented arguments for and against the application.
Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), is seeking the court’s intervention over allegations that Tinubu submitted a forged National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Moving the application, Atiku’s counsel, Joseph Silas Onu, told the court that he had filed a reply on points of law after receiving Tinubu’s counter-affidavit. He urged the court to grant the application.
However, Tinubu’s counsel, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), urged the court to dismiss the application for want of jurisdiction.
Olanipekun argued that Atiku, as a non-member of the President’s political party, lacked the locus standi to question the academic credentials Tinubu submitted to INEC. He cited Section 29(5) of the Electoral Act 2026 in support of his argument.
Counsel to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akin Olujimi (SAN), and INEC’s counsel, Alex Izinyon (SAN), also urged the court to dismiss the application.
In a counter-affidavit filed on behalf of the APC, Olujimi argued that the suit was statute-barred, contending that the relevant certificates had been submitted to INEC before August 1 and that the 14-day period allowed for such litigation had elapsed.
Izinyon challenged the competence of the suit on several grounds, including statute of limitation, lack of locus standi, absence of a reasonable cause of action and abuse of court process.
INEC also argued that the plaintiffs failed to comply with the mandatory written deposition requirement under Paragraph 7(1) of the Federal High Court Pre-Election Practice Directions (Amendment) 2026.
Atiku had personally appeared at the court registry to depose to an affidavit in support of his application seeking an order compelling Tinubu to produce his Form CF001 submitted to INEC.
The suit relies, among other provisions, on Sections 137(1)(j), 139(1)(a)(i) and 285(14)(c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, as well as relevant provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.
Atiku is asking the court to determine whether Tinubu and the APC should be disqualified from participating in the 2027 presidential election on the grounds that the President allegedly presented a forged NYSC certificate to INEC in connection with the 2023 and 2027 elections.
In his affidavit, Atiku alleged that Tinubu submitted an NYSC discharge certificate to INEC bearing the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle”, which he claimed differed from the President’s name, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
He further alleged that the certificate was not obtained by Tinubu, contrary to the representation made in connection with the 2027 presidential election.
Atiku has also asked INEC to produce Tinubu’s Form CF001 submitted in connection with the 2023 and 2027 presidential elections. He said the commission had failed to respond to earlier requests for certified true copies of the relevant documents.