September 6, (THEWILL) – The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC), sitting at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, on Wednesday, upheld the election of President Bola as the actual winner of the February 25 presidential election in Nigeria.
THEWILL earlier reported that the five-member panel of the court, led by Justice Haruna Tsammani, include Abba Mohammed, Moses Ugo, Stephen Adah and Monsurat Bolaji-Yusuf.
In its judgement, the court said it has come to an inevitable conclusion that the petitioners failed to prove any of the grounds as known by law, to warrant the annulment of President Tinubu’s victory.
In upholding Tinubu’s election victory, the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal held that the Petitioners (Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar and the Allied Peoples Movement, APM), failed to discharge the burden of proof placed on them by law to substantiate how the election of Tinubu was rigged and conducted in non-compliance with the provision of the Electoral Act and the Constitution.
Specifically, Justice Moses Ugo and Justice Stephen Adah, who read the judgement on the petition filed by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, as well as Justice Haruna Tsammani and Justice Abba Mohammed, who read the judgement on the petition of the Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, held that the Petitioners failed to prove their allegations that the February 25 Presidential election was marred by irregularities.
The court rejected all the claims that the election was marred by irregularities and that President Bola Tinubu and vice president, Kashim Shettima, were not qualified to contest the 2023 General election.
More so, it held that the Petitioners were unable to give specific details of where alleged infractions took place.
On whether the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was right to return Tinubu as the duly elected by majority of lawful votes cast in the February 25, 2023 poll, Justice Tsammani said, “This petition accordingly lacks merit. I affirm the return of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the duly elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The parties are to bear their cost.”
Consequently, the court stuck out all the three petitions seeking to upturn the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the February 25 Presidential election.
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