President Bola Tinubu has urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to compel the National Assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings against him over alleged human rights violations.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1334/2024, was filed by legal practitioner Olukoya Ogungbeje, who argued that the administration’s suppression of peaceful protests amounted to an impeachable offense.
Ogungbeje named the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, as the second defendant in the case. He is seeking six principal reliefs from the court, including a declaration that the alleged crackdown on protests violated citizens’ rights and constituted grounds for impeachment.
According to the plaintiff, between August 1 and 10, 2024, the government violently suppressed peaceful demonstrations across the country, an action he claimed amounted to misconduct under Section 143 of the 1999 Constitution.
In response, President Tinubu and the AGF jointly filed a preliminary objection, challenging the plaintiff’s legal standing to bring the suit. They argued that Ogungbeje lacked the locus standi (legal right) to initiate such an action and urged the court to dismiss the case for being incompetent. The defendants contended that the suit failed to establish any reasonable cause of action warranting judicial intervention.
Legal analysts suggest the case could test the limits of constitutional provisions on presidential accountability and citizens’ rights to peaceful assembly.
However, with the presidency’s firm stance against the suit, it remains uncertain whether the court will entertain the plaintiff’s demands or dismiss the case outright.
The Federal High Court is now expected to rule on the preliminary objection in the coming weeks, a decision that could set a legal precedent for similar cases challenging presidential authority in Nigeria.
