In a fresh order at the hearing on the alleged certificate forgery by the All Progressives Congress (APC), Presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu., Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday asked the, plaintiff, the Action Alliance Party to present its witnesses in court on October 12, 2022.
Action Alliance Party in the suit, is seeking disqualification of Bola Tinubu from the 2023 election on an alleged certificate Forgery.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu issued the order on Thursday when he fixed October 12 as the new date for the parties in the suit to complete filing of their processes and exchange same as required by law before the adjourned date.
On his part, the major defendant, Bola Tinubu, in the alleged certificate forgery suit has engaged the services of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr Babatunde Ogala to enable him fortify his defence.
At Thursday’s proceedings, counsel to the Action Alliance which instituted the suit, Mr Ukpai Ukairo, informed the court that he only just received the notice of preliminary objection from Tinubu asking the court not to entertain the case against him on various grounds.
Among other grounds, Tinubu claimed that the foundation for the certificate forgery suit against him was rooted in the 1999 electoral forms he submitted to the then electoral body..
He also claimed that the report of the Lagos State House of Assembly which probed him on the alleged certificate forgery is the main foundation of the fresh suit and hence, has become statute barred.
However, counsel to the Action Alliance, Ukairo informed the court that the claims of the former Lagos State Governor especially on the statute barred position would be adequately addressed in the subsequent proceedings.
Ukairo told the Judge that Tinubu’s claims made orally by his counsel had to be made formally and served on him to enable him respond appropriately.
While the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC which is the 1sr defendant in the suit, sought for time to respond to the suit, the APC was not represented in court despite proof of service of the suit on it.
The Judge accordingly adjourned the matter till October 2, for parties to put their houses in order for proper hearing of the alleged certificate forgery suit.
Action Alliance (AA) had on June 21, asked the court to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from including the name of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the ballot of the 2023 presidential election.
The party in the Writ of Summons marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/954/2022, predicated its request on the claim that both the APC and its presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu are not qualified to participate in the 2023 presidential election on alleged forgery committed by Tinubu in 1999.
The suit filed on behalf of the plaintiff by its lawyer, Mr Upkai Ukairo, claimed that Tinubu forged his university of Chicago certificate he submitted in 1999 in aid of his qualification for the 1999 governorship election in Lagos State, which was won by Tinubu.
The suit, dated and filed on June 21, has the Independent National Electoral Commission, All Progressives Congress and Senator Bola Tinubu as 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants respectively.
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