3rd July, 2023
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) failed to open its defence of the conduct of the February 25 2023 presidential election on Monday because of the absence of the witness it scheduled to call for the day.
INEC, is the first respondent in the petition filed by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) against its declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the February, 25 presidential election.
However, INEC’s lawyer, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) told the Justice Haruna Tsammani led five-man panel of the Presidential Election Petition Court on Monday morning that the witness it scheduled to call to open was not available because of family issues.
INEC had indicated that it will call three witnesses to defend its conduct of the 2023 presidential election and declaration of Tinubu as winner.
He then asked the court for an adjournment till Tuesday to enable the witness attend court.
Lawyers to other parties in the case – Livy Uzoukwu (SAN) for Obi/LP, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) for President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettma, and Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) for the All Progressives Congress (APC) – did not object to the request by Mahmoud.
Based on the request, Justice Tsammani adjourned till Tuesday by 9am for hearing.
But the court will return in the afternoon to hear the petition by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
INEC on March 1 declared Tinubu the winner of the election with a total of 8.8 million votes. The former Lagos governor defeated the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP candidate Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi of Labour Party, LP, who scored 6.9 million and 6.1 million, respectively.
But Atiku and Obi had filed separate petitions at the PEPC seeking the annulment of the outcome of the election.
Obi had closed his case after calling 13 witnesses and tendering thousands of documents used for the election across the country last week.