Another hurdle to stop the swearing-in of the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has been thrown up by some Abuja residents asking a Federal High Court to stop the May 29, inauguration for failing to win 25% of votes in the FCT in the last presidential election.

The legal tussle around Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 general elections began to pile up after his declaration as the winner of the polls. His rivals, the candidates of the People Democratic Party and Labour Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi have already headed to the electoral tribunal to challenge his victory.

The Abuja residents in the suit against the Attorney General of the federation and the Chief Justice of Nigeria marked FHC/ABJ/CS/578/2023 filed before the federal high court in Abuja on April 28, want the Court to “determine whether the plaintiffs and other residents of Abuja and registered voters have a legal interest in and therefore a constitutional right to be heard on whether or not the person who is to be elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and consequently, administrator of the Territory through the Minister of the FCT and FCTDA on the first ballot is required by section 134(2)(b) of the constitution to obtain at least 25 percent of the votes cast in the FCT”.

The plaintiffs, including Anyaegbunam Okoye, David Adzer, Jeffrey Ucheh Osang Paul and Chibuike Nwanchukwu, sued for themselves and on behalf of other residents and registered voters in the FCT also want the court to give a verdict on “Whether the plaintiffs and other residents and registered voters in the FCT Abuja would not be discriminated against if any state within the Federal Republic of Nigeria were substituted for the FCT.”

The motion also sought clarification on the matter of “whether no candidate in the February 25th presidential election may validly be sworn in as president and commander in chief of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria without such candidate having obtained 25% of the votes cast in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja”.

Additionally, the plaintiffs requested that Buhari remains in office until the court made a decision regarding the legality of Mr. Tinubu’s election as the next president.

They want the Court to set aside or suspend any declaration and /or issuance of a certificate of return to any candidate in the February 25th presidential election in the country as having been elected save and except it is judicially determined with finality that such candidate fulfilled the conditions stated at section 134 (2)(b) of the constitution.

An order restraining the Chief Justice of Nigeria, any other judicial officer and/or any other authority or person from swearing in any candidate in the February 25th presidential election as President or Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria until it is judicially determined with finality in accordance with the provisions of the constitution that such candidate has fulfilled the requirements of the constitution.

It would be recalled that some opposition party members, including Yusuff Datti Baba Ahmed, the vice presidential candidate for the Labour Party, have made a similar request to the Chief Justice of Nigeria to halt the inauguration ceremony on May 29.

However, some legal experts and public affairs commentators have frowned at such the suit describing their attempt as undemocratic.