The ADC presidential candidate asks the Federal High Court in Abuja to disqualify President Bola Tinubu from the 2027 election over an alleged forged certificate
Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar on Friday, August 14, 2026, asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to disqualify President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from contesting the 2027 presidential election over allegations surrounding an NYSC discharge certificate.
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The case adds a fresh and potentially significant legal dimension to the political contest ahead of the 2027 presidential election, with Atiku and the ADC asking the court to determine whether Tinubu presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Atiku personally appeared at the registry of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday to depose to an affidavit supporting the action.
The suit names Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress and INEC as defendants.
At the centre of the Atiku challenges Tinubu case is Section 137(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution, which provides that a person is not qualified to contest the presidency if the person has presented a forged certificate to INEC.
According to Atiku’s affidavit, the NYSC discharge certificate attributed to Tinubu bears the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle”, rather than “Bola Ahmed Tinubu”.
Atiku and the ADC are asking the court to determine whether the certificate was genuinely obtained by Tinubu and whether the alleged discrepancy provides a constitutional basis for disqualifying him from the 2027 presidential contest.
The plaintiffs also allege that the certificate was submitted to INEC in connection with both the 2023 and 2027 presidential elections.
Atiku has further asked INEC to produce Tinubu’s Form CF001 for the two elections.
According to his camp, an application had previously been made for certified true copies of the relevant electoral documents, but the requested records had not been provided before the suit was filed.
Explaining his decision to personally swear to the affidavit, Atiku said the matter was too important to leave entirely to political debate.
“I came here personally because the issues before the court go to the heart of our Constitution and the integrity of the office of President,” Atiku said.
He argued that the judiciary, rather than political campaigns or social media exchanges, should determine whether the document is authentic.
“If the certificate belongs to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, let that be established before the court,” he said. “If ‘Tinubu Bola Adekunle’ and ‘Bola Ahmed Tinubu’ are the same person for that certificate, let the evidence establish it.”
The challenge also extends beyond the certificate itself.
Atiku and the ADC are questioning aspects of the Electoral Act 2026, arguing that legislation cannot prevent the enforcement of a constitutional provision concerning presidential qualification.
Their position is that where an ordinary law conflicts with the Constitution, the constitutional provision should prevail.
The legal challenge comes as Nigeria’s political parties increasingly position themselves for the 2027 presidential election, with Atiku emerging as the ADC’s presidential candidate and Tinubu expected to seek another term on the APC platform.
The certificate controversy is not entirely new. A separate legal action filed earlier in 2026 also raised allegations concerning Tinubu’s academic and NYSC credentials, although the present suit represents a new challenge brought by Atiku and the ADC.
The allegation that Tinubu presented a forged certificate remains an allegation before the court and has not been established by a judicial finding in this case.
The Presidency and INEC had not, as of the latest reports reviewed, issued a substantive response to Atiku’s new suit.
The case could therefore become a consequential pre-election legal battle if the Federal High Court proceeds to examine the authenticity, provenance and electoral use of the disputed document.
For Atiku, the lawsuit presents the issue as one of constitutional accountability rather than merely another political disagreement.
For Tinubu and the APC, the proceedings could create another legal and political test as preparations for the 2027 election gather momentum.
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The court’s eventual determination will be critical in establishing whether the allegations have a sufficient legal basis to affect Tinubu’s eligibility or whether the disputed certificate issues will have no bearing on his candidacy.
Quadri Olaitan is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, public affairs, and human-interest stories.
