In a significant development, President Bola Tinubu has made a formal request to the Supreme Court to disregard the academic records of Chicago State University (CSU) that were attached by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, to his election petition appeal. Tinubu argues that the inclusion of these records is not in line with the standard judicial proceedings in the country.
President Tinubu has contended that the discovery of CSU records was not part of the official record or judgment of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal. He is urging the apex court not to admit this evidence.
Tinubu further claimed that Atiku has a history of filing petitions first and then searching for supporting evidence, which he alleges Atiku demonstrated during his appeal of the tribunal’s judgment.
In response to Atiku’s appeal, filed by his legal team led by Wole Olanipekun, SAN, President Tinubu refuted claims of discrepancies in his credentials, asserting that these allegations were fabricated by the PDP’s presidential candidate during the February presidential election.
The President stated, “Appellants’ submission under paragraph 6.45 of their brief further exposes the entire attitude of the appellants before the lower court, that is, the attitude of first filing a petition and then fishing for evidence during the pendency of the petition and even up to the point of appeal to this honorable court.”
“While we object to this issue, we submit that the arguments regarding a purported ‘Case No. 1:23-CV05009-Re: Application of Atiku for an Order Directing Discovery from Chicago State University…’ is alien to these proceedings, does not arise from the record or the judgment of the lower court and cannot be countenanced by this honorable court, and we urge the court to so hold,” President Tinubu emphasized.
Tinubu argued that he was legitimately declared the winner of the presidential poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), amassing a significant portion of the total votes in 29 states across the nation.
President Tinubu has urged the court to dismiss Atiku’s appeal and uphold the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Court, which affirmed his election as the candidate with the highest number of votes.
He further accused Atiku of resorting to unfounded allegations when he and the PDP failed to provide evidence supporting their claim that he was not qualified to contest the election.
Tinubu asserted that Atiku introduced new issues, including allegations of previous convictions, forgery, and dual citizenship, after he had already responded to the initial petition.
He explained, “A dispassionate examination of these paragraphs will reveal that the appellants, as petitioners, were only out to spring surprises at the respondent as none of the highlighted paragraphs of their said replies was meant to reply to any new issue raised in the respondents’ reply.”
In response to the appellants’ claims on the modes of election result transmission, President Tinubu cited specific sections of the Electoral Act, emphasizing that the Act allows for either electronic transmission or transfer of results.
Tinubu concluded by calling for the appeal to be dismissed, asserting that it lacks merit and demonstrates an abusive use of the court process.
The President’s response marks a critical development in the ongoing legal battle surrounding the 2023 presidential election. The Supreme Court will play a pivotal role in determining the outcome of this appeal.