The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday granted an application by the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, to serve court processes on President Bola Tinubu through the All Progressives Congress.
Justice Inyang Ekwo granted the application while ruling on an ex parte motion filed by Atiku’s counsel, O.T. Omotayo-Ojo, seeking an order for substituted service on the President.
Atiku and his party, ADC, are seeking the disqualification of Tinubu and the APC from participating in the 2027 presidential election over an allegedly forged National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1888/2026, has Tinubu, APC and INEC as the first to third defendants, respectively.
The plaintiffs are asking the court to compel INEC to remove the names of Tinubu and APC from the list of candidates and political parties for the 2027 presidential election.
Moving the motion on Wednesday, Omotayo-Ojo told the court that the application became necessary because the plaintiffs had been unable to effect personal service of the originating summons and other processes on Tinubu.
He, therefore, urged the court to permit the documents to be served on the President through the APC, the second defendant in the suit.
Justice Ekwo granted the application.
Following an undertaking by Omotayo-Ojo, who held the brief of Silas Onu, that the plaintiffs would effect service within seven days, the judge ordered that the processes be served within the period.
The judge subsequently adjourned the suit until September 28 for mention.
At the previous proceedings on September 1, Onu had informed the court that the plaintiffs were yet to personally serve Tinubu with the originating summons and had sought an order permitting substituted service.
Meanwhile, Tinubu, the APC and INEC have filed responses challenging the competence of the suit and urging the court to dismiss it.
In a joint counter-affidavit filed on September 9, Tinubu and the APC asked the court to dismiss the suit in its entirety, arguing that it was incompetent and that the plaintiffs lacked the legal right to institute the action.
The first and second defendants denied submitting any forged certificate to INEC for either the 2023 or 2027 presidential elections.
