The Federal High Court in Abuja has issued a subpoena directing the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, to appear before it and produce electoral documents relating to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 1999 Lagos State governorship candidacy and his 2023 presidential election.
The subpoena was issued in connection with the ongoing criminal trial of human rights activist and African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, over his description of President Tinubu as a criminal.
According to the court document, Amupitan is required to produce two specific electoral records: INEC Form CF01, including the affidavit relating to lost certificates, submitted by Tinubu when he contested the Lagos State governorship election in 1999, and the INEC Form CF01 submitted by the President as a candidate in the 2023 presidential election.
The document, titled Subpoena Duces Tecum, directs the INEC chairman to appear before the Federal High Court, Abuja Judicial Division, and produce the requested documents while giving testimony on behalf of the defendant.
The subpoena was issued in charge number FHC/CR/484/2025, involving the Federal Republic of Nigeria as the complainant and Sowore as the defendant.
It was signed by Justice Mohammed Garba Umar and addressed to Professor Amupitan at the commission’s headquarters in Maitama, Abuja.
The development is part of efforts by Sowore’s defence team to present witnesses and documentary evidence in the criminal case instituted against him by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Sowore disclosed on Monday that the court had accepted subpoenas requiring Amupitan and Lagos-based All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain, Joe Igbokwe, to appear as witnesses in the case.
Speaking to journalists shortly after proceedings at the court, the activist said both individuals were expected to testify on Wednesday.
“One of them is the INEC chairman. I hope you heard that. Because I know when you go here, when you leave this place, the DSS will write your report for you,” Sowore said.
“But report this, because you are in court, that the INEC chairman has the subpoena to come and give testimony on Wednesday. And that’s going to be interesting. I don’t want to disclose why we are subpoenaing.”
Sowore also warned the prosecution against returning to court to challenge the subpoenas or seek to prevent the witnesses from appearing.
The activist described the development as significant to his defence, suggesting that the proceedings would examine issues surrounding Tinubu’s public records and political history, beyond the criminal allegations against him.
The case followed Sowore’s refusal to retract his description of President Tinubu as a criminal, an allegation that led to his prosecution by the DSS.
