The allegations of rigging made by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi, in the 2023 presidential election have been rejected by the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT), which affirmed the election victory of President Bola Tinubu.
Both Atiku and Obi have expressed their disagreement with the tribunal’s decision and intend to appeal to the Supreme Court. Atiku’s Lead Counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, stated that they believe they did not receive justice in the judgment and will continue their legal battle.
The PEPT, which commenced its proceedings in Abuja, ruled unanimously that the petitions filed by Atiku, Obi, and their respective parties lacked merit and upheld Tinubu’s electoral victory. The tribunal’s Chairman, Justice Haruna Tsammani, declared Tinubu as the duly elected President of Nigeria and ordered the parties to bear their costs.
The Legal Adviser of the Labour Party, Kehinde Edun, expressed disappointment with the judgment, particularly the tribunal’s rejection of ten out of thirteen witnesses presented by the party. Edun argued that the decision weakened their case and questioned the tribunal’s requirement for witness statements to be filed along with the initial petitions.
Edun indicated that the Labour Party would challenge the judgment at the Supreme Court, emphasizing the importance of seeking justice not only for their case but also for the sake of Nigeria’s jurisprudence.
In the judgment of Peter Obi and the Labour Party’s petition, the tribunal found that the allegations of irregularities were not adequately substantiated. They failed to provide specific details about where the alleged infractions occurred, such as the location of polling units where they claimed the election was rigged.
Furthermore, the tribunal rejected claims of fictitious results and over-voting, stating that the petitioners did not specify the polling units or provide exact figures for unlawful votes. The tribunal also criticized the petition for being vague and imprecise in several areas.
The tribunal dismissed the contention that Atiku was not validly nominated by the Labour Party, stating that the issue of membership is an internal affair of a political party and cannot be decided by the tribunal. It also held that Atiku was not obliged to join the second-place candidate, Atiku, or the PDP in the case, as they are not statutory respondents.
Regarding allegations of $460,000 forfeiture by Tinubu to the United States Government, the tribunal ruled that the petitioners failed to establish their claim that Tinubu was disqualified from contesting the presidential election.
The tribunal clarified that the mode of transmitting election results electronically is not mandatory, and INEC has the liberty to determine the mode it intends to use. It emphasized that the only technological requirement mandated for use by INEC during elections is the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System.
The tribunal also rejected the European Union Election Observers Mission report on the election, as it was not tendered by an official of the organization. Additionally, allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022 were dismissed for lack of substantial evidence.
In conclusion, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal has upheld President Bola Tinubu’s electoral victory and rejected the rigging allegations made by Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and their parties. Both Atiku and Obi have expressed their intention to appeal the decision at the Supreme Court.