Supreme Court Judgment: Atiku Holds World Press Conference On Monday

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, is scheduled to address the press on Monday, October 30, 2023. This announcement comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s recent dismissal of Atiku’s appeal and the affirmation of President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February presidential election. A statement from the PDP Publicity Office released on Saturday outlined the purpose of Atiku’s press conference. According to the statement, Atiku Abubakar will focus on addressing crucial national issues of serious importance. The press conference is set to take place at the PDP National Secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Abuja, with the event commencing at 11 am. The significance of this address and its potential implications for the nation are eagerly anticipated by the public.

Tinubu Tells Supreme Court To Dismiss Atiku’s Appeal 

President Bola Tinubu, who contested as the presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 election, has officially requested the Supreme Court to reject the appeal filed by Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the opposition party.  Tinubu’s response, which was presented by his legal team, comes in response to Atiku’s notice of appeal. This move follows the prior judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal on September 6, which dismissed Atiku’s petition challenging the outcome of the February 25 presidential election.  The tribunal cited Atiku’s failure to substantiate the claims in his petition and concluded that his case lacked merit. Atiku subsequently filed a notice of appeal with 35 grounds before the Supreme Court on September 18, seeking to have the tribunal’s findings and conclusions overturned.  He argued that the tribunal had made “grave errors and gross misrepresentations” that resulted in a miscarriage of justice. In his response, President Tinubu maintained that the presidential election petition tribunal had rightfully reached its verdict and upheld his election. He emphasized that the appellants had failed to substantiate their allegations and provide any compelling reason for the apex court to overturn the lower court’s findings. Tinubu also characterized Atiku’s appeal as “abusive in nature” and urged the Supreme Court to dismiss it.  He stated that the appeal lacked merit and bona fide and urged the court to affirm the lower court’s decision.  The legal battle continues as both parties await the Supreme Court’s decision.

Atiku Approaches Supreme Court, Seeks Nullification Of Tribunal Verdict

Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has escalated his legal battle by approaching the Supreme Court to challenge the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Court. The move comes after the petition court, on September 6, upheld the victory of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC), in the 2023 presidential election. Atiku’s Notice of Appeal, consisting of 35 grounds, asserts that the tribunal’s judgment, delivered by Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, was marred by serious errors and a miscarriage of justice. These errors and mis-judgments, according to Atiku’s lead counsel, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, warrant the Supreme Court’s intervention to rectify the situation. The Notice of Appeal seeks to have the Supreme Court set aside the entire findings and conclusions of the tribunal, as Atiku believes they do not accurately represent the substance of his petition. One of the key arguments put forth by the former Vice President is that the Tribunal erred in law by failing to nullify the presidential election conducted on February 25, 2023. This non-compliance with the Electoral Act, 2022, is alleged to be rooted in INEC’s conduct of the election, which, according to evidence presented to the tribunal, was characterized by grave and gross misrepresentation. This misrepresentation is deemed contrary to the principles outlined in the Electoral Act 2022 and runs counter to the “doctrine of legitimate expectation.” Atiku’s appeal to the Supreme Court signals his determination to exhaust all legal avenues available to challenge the tribunal’s judgment and contest the declaration of Tinubu as President by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Atiku’s insistence on FCT 25% votes illogical, absurd – INEC, Tinubu 

*25% votes mandatory, Atiku insists  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) have described the 25 percent of votes in the country’s capital insistence as absurd and illogical. At the resumed sitting of the presidential tribunal for the adoption of final addresses by different parties, the Respondents urged the court to dismiss Peter Obi and Atiku Atiku’s petitions as completely lacking in merit. The Petitioner Atiku Abubakar had urged the court to hold that he scored the majority of lawful votes cast in the February 25 polls while declaring that Tinubu’s alleged academic, court, and diplomatic records were enough to disqualify him from running for office. Responding, INEC maintained that the petitioners failed completely to discharge the burden placed on them by law against President Bola Tinubu’s victory. INEC’s lead counsel, Abubakar Mahmoud SAN, argued that the arguments of the petitioner’s case are non-compliance with the Electoral Act, INEC Regulations and Guidelines, and the use of technology in the election. On the 25% votes of the FCT, INEC insisted that the claim is illogical and absurd, adding that it will create a situation where FCT voters would be given special status above other Nigerians living in other states. Further in his adumbration, Mahmoud submitted that in evidence shows that accreditation and authentication of voters was effective and that the technical glitches cited by Atiku happened for about 4 hours but were resolved. Concluding, INEC added that the technical glitches did not affect the outcome of the presidential election. “Pieces of evidence adduced by the Petitioners showed that the BVAS actually did the work of capturing the image of the results band transmission to the INEC IREV. “They have failed woefully to establish that there was human interference in the technical glitches that happened on Election Day.” “The petitioners constructed certain things in their minds to which they failed to prove,” Mahmoud. President Tinubu on his part asked the court to dismiss Atiku’s petition for lacking in merit. Adopting his final addresses, Tinubu, through his counsel Wole Olanipekun SAN, insisted that uploading of polling unit results to INEC Results Viewing Portal, IReV, places no obligation on INEC regarding collation of results but was just for public view. Specifically, Tinubu submitted that there was no line in the Atiku’s’ final address stating how many votes Atiku Abubakar actually scored, adding that documents PDP tendered were dumped on the court and it is not the duty of the court to do an investigation of those documents. Therefore, he urged the court to dismiss Atiku’s petition and uphold Tinubu’s victory. “Your Lordships are not Father Christmas” to give parties whatever they want. Olanipekun also argued that it will lead to “absurdity” to interpret the 1999 Constitution without looking at all the sections talking about FCT. “FCT is the 37 state in Nigeria for the purpose of the presidential election,” Olanipekun said. Meantime, Justice Haruna Tsammani, reserved judgement for a later date that will be communicated to the parties.