A United States-based Nigerian attorney and former member of the House of Representatives, Kayode Oladele, has urged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, to stop what he described as their recurring “legal tourism” to the United States over President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and focus instead on substantive national issues ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Oladele said attempts to present Tinubu’s 1993 civil forfeiture proceedings in the United States as evidence of a criminal conviction were legally unfounded, saying he had found no federal court record showing that the President was ever criminally tried or convicted in the country.
“As a federal lawyer practising in the United States, I have examined available federal court records and have not found any court record showing that President Tinubu was ever criminally charged, prosecuted or convicted of any offence in the United States,” he said.

Oladele, who chaired the House Committee on Financial Crimes, added: “I really don’t know who their lawyers are or what legal advice they are receiving, but there should be an end to this legal tourism against President Tinubu. You cannot manufacture a criminal conviction where none exists.”
He said the 1993 case frequently cited by Tinubu’s opponents was a civil forfeiture proceeding involving property and should not be conflated with a criminal prosecution or conviction.
According to him, the distinction between civil forfeiture and criminal conviction is fundamental and cannot be altered by political rhetoric.

“Where is the indictment? Where is the criminal charge? Where was Tinubu arraigned? Where is the judgment convicting him of drug trafficking or any other criminal offence? There is none.
“An allegation is not a conviction. An investigation is not a conviction. A civil forfeiture proceeding is not, by itself, a criminal conviction. These are elementary distinctions in law,” he said.
Oladele noted that the forfeiture issue had featured in legal challenges arising from the 2023 presidential election, but did not result in Tinubu’s disqualification.

He described renewed efforts to search United States courts and government archives for documents that could create a legal obstacle to Tinubu’s re-election as a “wild goose chase”.
“Every election cycle, we seem to return to the same journey to America in search of an imaginary criminal conviction against Tinubu. At some point, this becomes embarrassing and risks turning those behind it into laughingstocks.
“American courts cannot manufacture a criminal conviction for the convenience of Nigerian politics. If there was no criminal trial and no conviction, no amount of document hunting can retrospectively create one,” he said.
The former lawmaker urged Atiku and Obi to focus their opposition on issues affecting Nigerians, including the economy, insecurity, employment, infrastructure and education.

“Campaigns should be issue-oriented rather than reduced to mudslinging over nothing. Atiku and Obi have every constitutional right to challenge President Tinubu, but let that challenge be based on competing ideas and programmes.
“If they believe they can govern Nigeria better, let them tell Nigerians how. Let them challenge Tinubu on his policies, programmes and performance and allow the electorate to decide,” he said.
Oladele also argued that Freedom of Information requests, archival searches or litigation in the United States could not substitute for a criminal conviction.

“If you allege that a man was convicted, produce the judgment of conviction. If you say he was criminally prosecuted, produce the indictment, the charge and the record of the criminal proceedings. You cannot substitute allegations or civil proceedings for a criminal judgment,” he said.
He urged opposition politicians to prepare for the 2027 contest rather than continue what he described as an endless search for legal shortcuts.

“My advice to Atiku and Obi is simple: end the legal tourism and face the issues. Come home and engage President Tinubu politically.
“The road to Aso Rock runs through the Nigerian electorate, not through American courthouses. President Tinubu will present his record, his opponents should present their alternatives, and Nigerians will decide who should lead them in 2027.”