The Supreme Court has decided to withhold its final judgment in the case brought by Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who is seeking to challenge the victory of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election. Justice John Inyang Okoro, heading a panel of seven Justices, made this announcement during Monday’s proceedings, following arguments presented by the lawyers involved in the case. Justice Okoro mentioned that the parties involved will be informed once a date for the judgment is set.
In the meantime, Atiku Abubakar, at the Supreme Court on Monday, reiterated his belief that President Bola Tinubu should be disqualified from the 2023 presidential election. Atiku argued that Tinubu was not constitutionally eligible to run for the election at the time he did so. He urged the apex court to apply constitutional provisions to invalidate Tinubu’s election, basing his request on allegations of certificate forgery and perjury.
If outright disqualification was not granted, Atiku appealed to Justice John Inyang Okoro’s panel to order a new election between himself and Tinubu. On the other hand, Tinubu, through his lead counsel, Wole Olanipekun, contended that Atiku’s claims of certificate forgery and perjury lacked substantiated evidence and should not be considered valid unless proven beyond a reasonable doubt, as required by law.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), represented by Abubakar Mahmoud, argued that Atiku’s petition lacked merit and should be dismissed. The All Progressives Congress (APC), led by Chief Akin Olujinmi, adopted Olanipekun’s position and called for the dismissal of the petition.