2027: Lawan, Kingibe face legal heat over senatorial tickets

The 2027 senatorial bids of former Senate President Ahmad Lawan and the senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, Ireti Kingibe, have come under legal attack at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

Justice Salim Ibrahim on Monday granted separate orders for substituted service of court processes on the two senators in suits challenging their emergence as candidates of their political parties for the 2027 general election, Arise News disclosed.

The orders followed two ex parte applications filed by aggrieved aspirants seeking to challenge the primaries that produced Lawan and Kingibe.

Hassan Kafayos is challenging Lawan’s emergence as the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate for Yobe North Senatorial District.

In a separate suit, Mubarak Tijani is asking the court to nullify the primary election that produced Kingibe as the African Democratic Congress, ADC, candidate for the FCT senatorial seat.

When Lawan’s matter came up, counsel to Kafayos, Francis Mgboh, told the court that the application for substituted service became necessary after the court bailiff was unable to serve the former Senate President personally.

Mgboh alleged that Lawan, who currently chairs the Senate Committee on Defence, had been evasive.

He asked the court to allow the claimant to serve the processes through any adult person found in the office of the Chairman, Senate Committee on Defence.

Justice Ibrahim granted the application and adjourned the matter until July 20 for hearing.

In Kingibe’s case, counsel to the plaintiff, Moses Awuru, also told the court that efforts to serve the senator personally had failed.

He asked the court to allow service through Kingibe’s legislative aide.

The judge granted the motion ex parte and adjourned the matter until July 21 for further mention.

In the substantive suit, Tijani is seeking the nullification of the result of the FCT senatorial primary election that produced Kingibe as ADC candidate for the 2027 poll.

The suits add to the growing wave of pre-election battles already trailing party primaries ahead of the 2027 general election.