August 01, (THEWILL) – Parties in the joint petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday, adopted their final written addresses before the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC), sitting in Abuja.
The petitioners, PDP and Atiku, are praying for the nullification of President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February 25 poll.
The former Vice President, in his petition marked CA/PEPC/05/2023, specifically asked the court to determine that the return of Tinubu by INEC, as winner of the 2023 presidential election “was unlawful, having not satisfied the requirements of the Electoral Act 2022 and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), which mandatorily requires that he scores nothing less than one quarter (25 percent) of the lawful votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the states in the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
“That it Should be determined that Atiku Abubakar, having scored the majority of lawful votes cast at the Presidential election, be returned as the winner of the said election and be sworn in as the duly elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“As a further alternative, that the election to the office of the President of Nigeria held on 25th February 2023 be nullified and a fresh election (re-run) be ordered.”
While adopting his final written address on Tuesday, Counsel to Atiku, Chris Uche (SAN), who pleaded with the court to grant the prayers of the petitioners, urged the Court to dismiss all the preliminary objections to the admissibility of some exhibits tendered to support his petition.
Similarly, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), counsel to President Bola Tinubu, urged the Court to dismiss the petition for lacking in merit.
On its part, the INEC, through its counsel, Abubakar Mahmud (SAN) and counsel to the APC, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), appealed to the Presidential election petition Court to dismiss the petition, as the petitioners failed to discharge the burden placed upon them by law in their petition.
Rulings on all the preliminary objections by the parties have been reserved alongside the judgement on the main petition.
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