- An appeals court in Nigeria has rejected petitions filed by the opposition challenging President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February election, stating that the political parties were not able to prove their cases alleging voting irregularities and questioning Tinubu’s qualifications. Three opposing parties challenged the election results, which they said was illegally announced, and argued that Tinubu was not qualified to run for president because he was a citizen of Guinea and allegedly did not have the required academic credentials. The opposition, which had hinted at possible protests if the court upheld Tinubu’s election, rejected the court’s ruling but did not immediately say if they will appeal it. The verdict can be appealed at Nigeria’s Supreme Court within 60 days.
- In the Court of Appeal in Abuja, a five-member justice panel dismissed most of the grounds of the petitions filed by the Peoples Democratic Party’s Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president who came second in the election, the third-place finisher Peter Obi with the Labour Party, as well as the Allied Peoples Movement. The panel ruled that Obi was not able to prove his claims that the Nigerian election commission did not follow due process in announcing the results of the vote nor that the voting was marred by irregularities and that he — not Tinubu — won the election with a majority of votes. The court also ruled that he failed to prove his claim that Tinubu was once indicted on drug charges in the United States, thereby disqualifying him from running for president.
- Tinubu, who is currently attending the G20 summit in India, has denied all the allegations made by the petitioners. Amid tight security in Abuja, various support groups chanted songs near the court premises to show solidarity with their political parties and to urge the judiciary to “do the right thing.”
- The tribunal is empowered to either uphold Tinubu’s election win, declare someone else the winner, annul the vote, or order a new election. It would have been a first in Nigeria’s history if the judges upheld the petitions and annulled the presidential election.
Source:
San Diego Union Tribune
Via:
Chinedu Asadu