The All Progressives Congress has objected to an order of the Federal High Court in Abuja permitting court processes meant for President Bola Tinubu to be served through the party’s national secretariat.
The objection concerns a suit filed by African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar and another plaintiff against Tinubu, the APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The case is marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1888/2026 and is before Justice I.E. Ekwo.
In a letter dated September 22, 2026 and addressed to the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court, APC National Secretary Ajibola Basiru described the ex parte application for substituted service as unnecessary and misleading.
The party said Tinubu’s legal team had already obtained the originating processes and filed a preliminary objection and substantive defence before the substituted service application was moved.
According to the APC, when the case came up on September 1, counsel appearing for Tinubu indicated willingness to accept service on the President’s behalf but counsel to the plaintiffs objected.
The party said Tinubu later instructed his lead counsel, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, to obtain certified true copies of the originating processes.
The APC stated that Tinubu’s lawyers obtained the documents on September 11, filed a preliminary objection on September 14 and submitted a defence and written address on September 15.
It further said the documents were served on counsel to the plaintiffs before the ex parte application for substituted service was moved on September 16.
Basiru argued that the APC had no authority from Tinubu to accept personal service on his behalf because the President had already retained counsel to represent him in the matter.
The party urged the court to guard against what it described as abusive use of judicial processes for media or political purposes.
The APC’s claims represent its account of the procedural history and remain subject to the court’s determination.
The underlying suit concerns questions raised by the plaintiffs over Tinubu’s eligibility and participation in the electoral process.
No conclusion on the merits of the eligibility claims should be drawn from the dispute over service, which is a procedural issue before the Federal High Court.
