Atiku, ADC Move to Amend Suit Against Tinubu’s 2027 Eligibility
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the African Democratic Congress, ADC, have moved to amend their suit challenging President Bola Tinubu’s eligibility to contest the 2027 presidential election, with the Federal High Court in Abuja fixing October 13, 2026, for hearing of the application. The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1888/2026, also lists the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as defendants. At Wednesday’s proceedings before Justice Inyang Ekwo, counsel to the plaintiffs, Joseph Silas, informed the court that all defendants had been served with the relevant processes within the stipulated period and that the plaintiffs had received and responded to the defendants’ processes. The case had previously encountered a dispute over service on the first defendant. Counsel for Tinubu, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, recalled that at the September 1 hearing, counsel to the second defendant, Popoola Owosanya, had offered to receive the processes on behalf of the President, but the offer was rejected by the plaintiffs’ counsel. Olanipekun further said the plaintiffs later sought an order for substituted service after alleging difficulty serving Tinubu personally, accusing them of subsequently attempting to “deceive this court” by claiming they could not serve the President. Justice Ekwo, however, directed the lawyers to concentrate on the matter before the court.
Silas subsequently notified the court of the plaintiffs’ application seeking to amend their originating summons and confirmed that the defendants had been served with the application. After verifying service, Justice Ekwo adjourned the case until October 13, 2026, for hearing of the motion to amend the originating summons. Atiku and the ADC instituted the suit in August, with their challenge centred primarily on an alleged discrepancy involving the name appearing on a National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, discharge certificate submitted to INEC and the President’s official name. The allegation forms part of the substantive issues yet to be determined by the court. On September 16, the court granted the plaintiffs permission to serve Tinubu through the APC after they said attempts to effect personal service on the President had proved difficult. The APC subsequently challenged the order, arguing that Tinubu’s lawyers had already collected the originating processes and filed his defence before the application for substituted service was made. Meanwhile, INEC has filed a response challenging the competence of the action, including arguments concerning the plaintiffs’ locus standi and alleged abuse of court process.
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