2027: Atiku’s Legal Offensive Against Tinubu Hits Early Setback
By Akin Alade
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s legal move to challenge President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s eligibility for the 2027 presidential election has encountered an early procedural setback after the Federal High Court in Abuja adjourned the case following difficulties in serving the President with the originating court processes.
The development adds another dimension to the intensifying political rivalry between Tinubu and Atiku as preparations and political manoeuvring ahead of the 2027 presidential election continue to gather momentum.
Atiku is challenging Tinubu’s eligibility to seek another term in office over an alleged discrepancy involving the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
However, the substantive issues raised in the suit could not yet take centre stage after Atiku’s legal team informed Justice Inyang Ekwo that efforts to personally serve President Tinubu with the originating summons had been unsuccessful.
Interestingly, counsel representing Tinubu appeared before the court and offered to accept the processes on behalf of the President, a move that could potentially have cleared the way for the case to proceed.
Atiku’s counsel, however, maintained that the processes should either be personally served on Tinubu or delivered through legally approved substituted service.
The disagreement over service consequently prevented the court from proceeding to the substantive questions raised against the President.
The court subsequently adjourned the matter until September 28, 2026, for further mention.
At the centre of Atiku’s case is an allegation that the NYSC certificate submitted by Tinubu to INEC bears the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle,” while the President is officially known as Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Atiku and the other plaintiffs want the Federal High Court to determine whether the alleged difference has any constitutional implication for Tinubu’s qualification to contest the 2027 presidential election.
However, no judicial determination has been made on the substance or validity of the allegation, as the case remains at the preliminary stage.
The latest development means Atiku’s legal challenge must first overcome the procedural issue surrounding service before arguments over Tinubu’s eligibility can be fully entertained.
The courtroom battle is expected to attract considerable political attention because both Tinubu and Atiku remain major figures in Nigeria’s emerging 2027 political calculations.
Tinubu defeated Atiku and other challengers in the 2023 presidential election before assuming office on May 29, 2023. With the next general election approaching, political disagreements between the President’s camp and opposition figures have increasingly moved beyond campaign rhetoric into legal and institutional battles.
For Atiku, the September 28 proceedings could prove important in determining how quickly his challenge progresses.
For Tinubu, meanwhile, the immediate development leaves his eligibility untouched, as the Federal High Court has neither considered nor ruled on the merits of Atiku’s allegations.
What began as an attempt to open another major legal front against the President has therefore encountered its first procedural hurdle, setting the stage for what could become one of the most closely watched political court battles ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 presidential election.
