INEC asks court to quash Tinubu records subpoena

Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission has asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to set aside a subpoena requiring its chairman, Joash Amupitan, to produce President Bola Tinubu’s election records from 1999 and 2023 and testify in Omoyele Sowore’s criminal trial. The commission filed its motion on November 10, one day before a hearing scheduled for November 11. The court had not ruled on the application in reports published around the hearing date.

The subpoena, issued on October 26, directs Amupitan to provide documents submitted by Tinubu for the 1999 Lagos State governorship election and the 2023 presidential election. The records include a 1999 candidate form and an affidavit concerning lost certificates, as well as nomination papers for the 2023 election. Sowore’s defence team sought the documents for his trial, in which the State Security Service is prosecuting him over social media posts describing Tinubu as a criminal. Sowore has pleaded not guilty, according to court reporting.

In its application, INEC argued that Amupitan was not personally served with the subpoena and that the records were not in its custody in the form described. The commission said the...