The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has filed a counter-affidavit urging the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a lawsuit brought by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, which alleges that President Bola Tinubu submitted a forged certificate to qualify for the presidency. INEC's legal team, led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Dr Alex Izinyon, argued that the suit constitutes a gross abuse of the judicial process.
INEC's Objection: Lack of Legal Standing and Abuse of Process
In its counter-affidavit, INEC contended that Atiku lacks the legal right, known as locus standi, to bring the case, and that the issues raised are hypothetical and academic. The commission also argued that the action discloses no reasonable cause and should be dismissed in full. The counter-affidavit was supported by a deposition from Ayuba Mohammed, an Administrative Officer in INEC's Litigation and Prosecution Department.
According to Vanguard, INEC's position is that the suit amounts to a gross abuse of the judicial process. The commission's legal team emphasized that Atiku's claims do not meet the legal threshold for the court to consider them.
INEC's Position on Candidate Credentials
INEC was careful not to comment on whether Tinubu's educational credentials are genuine. Instead, it told the court that it does not manufacture, originate, or procure the personal certificates that candidates submit, and that receiving such documents does not amount to confirming their authenticity. INEC added that section 137 of the Constitution spells out the consequences for any candidate proved to have submitted a forged certificate, but stressed that a mere allegation, without actual proof, does not trigger the constitutional disqualification.
"That the 3rd defendant denies any suggestion that a mere allegation that a forged certificate was presented, without proof of the fact of presentation and of the alleged forgery, automatically activates the constitutional disqualification prescribed by section 137(1)(j) of the Constitution," the commission's deponent said, as reported by the Nigerian Tribune.
Atiku's Allegations and the 2027 Election Context
Atiku, who contested the 2023 presidential election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party and has since been ratified as the presidential candidate of the New Democratic Congress (NDC) for 2027, filed the suit alongside the African Democratic Congress as co-plaintiff. Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress, and INEC were listed as first to third defendants.
In his 25-paragraph personal affidavit, Atiku alleged that the NYSC discharge certificate Tinubu submitted to INEC bears the name "Tinubu Bola Adekunle," which he claimed does not belong to the president. He argued that Tinubu has relied on this certificate since the 1999 Lagos State governorship election.
"I know that the said NYSC certificate is still in existence and in the custody of the 3rd defendant (INEC), and that it is a forgery, as the 1st defendant's name is not Adekunle, and yet he submitted it to the 3rd defendant to be acted upon as genuine," Atiku said.
Among the reliefs he is seeking, Atiku wants the court to disqualify Tinubu and the APC from the 2027 presidential election based on the 1999 certificate submission.
Next Court Proceedings
Justice Inyang Ekwo has scheduled September 28 for further proceedings in the case, which is marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1888/2026. The court will hear the arguments from both sides on the preliminary objections raised by INEC, and the outcome will determine whether the suit proceeds to full trial or is dismissed.
