The Supreme Court is set to determine the fate of President Bola Tinubu today, December 16, in a fresh suit challenging his qualification to hold office as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The case, marked SC/CV/667/2023, seeks Tinubu’s removal on allegations of non-qualification and unlawful usurpation of the presidency in violation of Nigeria’s laws.
The suit was filed by Chief Ambrose Albert Owuru, a 2019 presidential candidate under the Hope Democratic Party (HDP). Owuru claims he won the 2019 presidential election but alleges that his mandate was usurped by former President Muhammadu Buhari, whose tenure he says should have been invalidated by the Supreme Court due to procedural lapses in hearing his earlier case.
Owuru further alleges that Tinubu is unfit for office, citing his alleged forfeiture of $460,000 to U.S. authorities over drug-related offences and accusations of acting as an agent for the CIA, which he claims violates Section 157 of the 1999 Constitution by placing Tinubu under foreign control. Owuru has asked the court to disqualify Tinubu and declare him (Owuru) the rightful President of Nigeria, with an order for his immediate inauguration.
The Supreme Court has scheduled a definite hearing for the suit on today, December 16, 2024. A hearing notice confirmed the case involving Owuru and Tinubu, along with former President Buhari, the Attorney General of the Federation, and INEC as co-defendants.
Legal representation for Tinubu includes Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Chief Wole Olanipekun. It is unclear whether Owuru has paid a previous N40 million fine imposed by the Court of Appeal for filing a similar suit against Tinubu and other parties.
Hearing notices have been served, and all parties are expected to appear before the apex court for proceedings on Monday.
