26th October, 2023
By Ebere Agozie
It was a total victory for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday as the Supreme Court throws out the appeals of his closest challengers in the 2023 presidential election – Atiku Ababakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi of Labour Party, LP.
Atiku and Obi who came second and third in the 2023 presidential election had asked the Supreme Court to nullify the victory of Tinubu in the February 25, presidential election.
The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC had in a ruling on 6 September dismissed the petitions filed by the PDP and the LP candidates against the outcome of the 2023 presidential election.
But not ones to be deterred, Atiku and Obi had headed to the Supreme Court to ventilate their grievances against the outcome of the election.
In the notice of appeal, Atiku had urged the apex court to dismiss and set aside the September 6, judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Court, which affirmed the victory of President Tinubu.
However, while delivering judgment in Atiku’s appeal on Thursday, a seven-man panel of Justices led by John Okoro threw out his petition as they knocked the bottom off the seven issues he raised for determination.
For one, the Justices of the apex court held that failure to transmit election results electronically did not affect the outcome of the election and could not warrant the nullification of the victory of President Tinubu as Atiku and Obi argued in their petitions which was thrown out by the PEPC.
The apex court also stated that Atiku did not produce alternative results of the presidential election that showed he won the majority number of votes cast to rebuff the one declared by INEC for Tinubu as he argued in his petition at the lower court.
The court resolved all the 7 issues distilled for determination in favour of Tinubu, stating that the appeal lacked merit.
The apex court also thrashed issues canvassed for nullification of Tinubu’s victory by Atiku and PDP on qualification, non-compliance with the Electoral Act, the 25% votes in FCT, and electoral malpractices.
“On the whole, having resolved all the issues against the appellant, it is my view that there is no merit in the appeal and it is hereby dismissed,” Justice Inyang Okoro said in dismissing Atiku’s appeal.
“The judgment of the court below delivered on September 6th, 2023 affirming the election of the second respondent as the duly elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is hereby affirmed.”
The Justices noted that the issues canvassed by Atiku were similar to those canvassed by Peter Obi.
However, they made pronouncements on the LP’s presidential candidate argument that the victory of Tinubu should be annulled over the issue of double nomination of Vice-President Kashim Shettima.
The court held that the issue had been dealt with in its ruling on May 26.
“As for issue Number 4 which has to do with double nomination which was not in Atiku’s appeal, it is the view of this court that this issue having been dealt with by this court, this court cannot allow the matter to be re-litigated in this very court.
“There must be an end to litigation,” Okoro held. (NAN)