The Diaspora Medics for Good Governance (DM4GG) and the UpNorth Ambassadors for Peter Obi have joined forces to urge the court to halt the inauguration, citing several unresolved issues involving the APC candidate.
After congregating for several hours outside the Court of Appeal building, security was heightened as the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal in Abuja began the pre-hearing for petitions challenging the results of the February 25th presidential election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission reported that Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress received 8,794,726 votes to win the election, while Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party came in second with 6,984,520 votes, and Peter Obi finished third with 6,101,533 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome, Atiku and Obi approached the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to annul Tinubu’s victory.
Lawyers gathered for the pre-hearing at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja as early as 6 am. Proceedings began shortly after 9 am, followed by a recess and reconvening at 10:30 am.
Security around the court premises was nearly impenetrable, with Nigerian Police Force officers cordoning off the road leading to the court.
According to the cause list, the first case to be adjudicated, following the unveiling of the tribunal, involved the Action Alliance (AA) and its presidential candidate, Solomon David Okanigbuan, who notified the tribunal of their intention to withdraw their petition against Tinubu’s declaration as Nigeria’s President-elect.
Besides Tinubu, other respondents listed in AA’s petition include the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), All Progressives Congress (APC), and Hamza Al Mustapha.
Other petitions presented at the pre-hearing session include those from the Action People’s Party (APP), which has Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as three respondents.
Following that was Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP)’s petition, marked CA/PEPC/03/2023, with INEC, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senator Kashim Shettima, and APC listed as four respondents.
Next, the Allied People’s Movement (APM) proceeded against Tinubu. Defendants in APM’s petition included INEC, APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Kashim Shettima, and Kabir Masari. Atiku Abubakar and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP)’s petition, marked CA/PEPC/05/2023, will be addressed last and lists INEC, Tinubu Bola Ahmed, and the APC as three respondents.
The court pre-hearing resumed at around 9:15 am, with Presiding Justice Haruna Tsammani delivering an opening remark and leading a five-member panel of Justices. Other panel members are Justice Stephen Adah, Justice Misitura Bolaji-Yusuf, Justice Boloukuoromo Moses Ugo, and Justice Abbah Mohammed.
Justice Tsammani asserted that the panel will ensure justice in the case and advised lawyers against making sensational comments. He also requested their cooperation since the case is time-sensitive and urged them to avoid submitting unnecessary applications that would waste the court’s time.
In separate responses, counsels for President-Elect Wole Olanikpekun, Atiku Abubakar’s Chris Uche, and Peter Obi’s Livy Uzoukwu assured the court of their full cooperation and support. Justice Tsammani concluded by stating that everyone will be satisfied with the verdict at the end of the case.
