Atiku Files Suit Challenging Tinubu's 2027 Election Eligibility

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar personally appeared at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday, August 14, 2026, to file a lawsuit challenging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's qualification to contest the 2027 presidential election. The suit, brought by Abubakar and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), alleges that President Tinubu submitted a forged National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The legal action names Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and INEC as defendants. It invokes several provisions of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and the Electoral Act, 2026. Central to the case is Section 137(1)(j) of the Constitution, which states that a person is not qualified for election to the office of President if they have presented a forged certificate to INEC.

In an affidavit deposed to at the court registry, Abubakar alleged that the NYSC certificate submitted to INEC bears the name "Tinubu Bola Adekunle," which differs from the President's official name, Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The plaintiffs contend this document is not a certificate obtained by the President and was submitted in connection...