APA – Lagos (Nigeria) The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja affirmed the victory of Bola Tinubu at the February 2023 presidential elections.
In a unanimous ruling by the seven justices of the Supreme Court, which was delivered by Justice John Okoro, the justices dismissed the appeal by Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and that of Peter Obi of the Labour Party which challenged the judgment of the presidential petition tribunal.
Among the issues raised by the apex court included the rejection of the application to admit new evidence on Tinubu’s degree certificate obtained from an American university by Atiku Abubakar.
It was meant to show the certificate submitted by Tinubu was forged, but the justices held that the constitutionally allowed period for such evidence to be admitted had since elapsed.
According to justices, the 180 days donated to the tribunal by the Constitution, expired on September 17, adding that the Supreme Court no longer has the requisite jurisdiction to admit the document.
“This court cannot do what the trial court is no longer constitutionally permitted to do,” Justice Okoro held, adding that Atiku and the PDP could no longer invoke the provision of Section 22 of the Supreme Court Act.
The justices, who described the applications by Atiku and Obi were frivolous and deserved to be dismissed, also rejected the plea by Obi that Tinubu did not secure 25 per cent of the votes cast in Abuja during the polls, adding that Abuja does not enjoy any special status and affirmed the decision of the lower court on the matter.
The apex court also supported the judgment of the tribunal for striking out witnesses of Atiku Abubakar’s testimonies on manipulation in the election, describing the Atiku’s witnesses’ testimonies as hearsays.
The other six justices on the panel were Uwani Aji, Mohammed Garba, Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, Abubakar Tijjani, and Emmanuel Agim.
With the Supreme Court judgment on the presidential election, the opposition has no choice than to accept the verdict of the apex court and prepare for the next presidential election in 2027.
GIK/APA