The Federal High Court has adjourned Atiku’s suit challenging President Tinubu’s eligibility to participate in the 2027 presidential election to September 28, after Atiku’s lawyer told the court that his client had not yet served the suit’s originating documents on President Tinubu personally.
During today’s proceedings, Atiku’s lawyer, Joseph Silas Onu, said he required an order of court to serve the documents on President Tinubu through substituted means.
At that point, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Omosanya Popoola, who led a team of lawyers for President Tinubu and the APC, volunteered to accept service of the documents on behalf of the President.
Popoola urged the court to order Atiku’s lawyer to hand the documents to him in open court for onward transmission to President Tinubu, a request Onu objected to.
Atiku’s lawyer requested that Popoola provide a written undertaking that he had President Tinubu’s mandate to represent him in court before he could hand over the documents.
Despite Popoola’s assurance that President Tinubu had given him the authority to represent him, Onu insisted that, owing to the sensitive nature of the case, his client would prefer to effect personal service of the process or secure an order for substituted service.
After listening to all the parties, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that he could not dictate to the plaintiffs how to conduct their case.
Consequently, he adjourned the matter for mention and vowed to take drastic action against any party that discussed details of the pending case in the media.
