President Bola Tinubu has cautioned the presidential elections tribunal not to nullify his election over his failure to meet the constitutional requirement of 25 per cent of votes in Abuja.
Tinubu, who was declared the winner of the February presidential poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), said such a move would amount to absurdity, chaos and anarchy and would subvert the will of the people.
In his final defence statement submitted by his lawyers led by Wole Olanipekun, Tinubu argued that the constitutional provision that stipulates that a presidential candidate must score 25 per cent of votes in two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) should not be interpreted in a way that would invalidate his election.
He admitted that he did not score 25 per cent of votes in Abuja, but said he met the requirement in 34 out of the 36 states. He also said he would still have won the election even if he did not score anything in Abuja and one other state.
“Any other interpretation different from this will lead to absurdity, chaos, anarchy and alteration of the very intention of the legislature,” Mr Tinubu’s lawyers led by Wole Olanipekun said in their final defence statement to the court.
He urged the tribunal to adopt a purposeful approach to the interpretation of the Constitution, as done by previous courts, and to respect the choice of the electorate.
He said there was no special voting right for residents of Abuja over those of other states and that there was no “royal” ballot or voter in a presidential election.
“Our courts have always adopted the purposeful approach to the interpretation of our Constitution, as exemplified in a host of decisions,” the team said.
He asked the tribunal to dismiss the petitions filed by Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP), who challenged his election on various grounds, including his failure to score 25 per cent in Abuja.
He said Mr Tinubu would still have won the election even if he didn’t score anything in Abuja and one other state.
“Even if there was no election in one State (including the FCT), or even if the election of a State/States (including the FCT) is/are voided, the entire election cannot be voided or canceled.
“In concluding our arguments on this issue, we urge the court to hold that any election where the electorate exercise their plebiscite, there is neither a ‘royal’ ballot nor ‘royal’ voter; and that residents of the FCT do not have any special voting right over residents of any other State of the federation, in a manner similar to the concepts of preferential shareholding in Company Law.
“We urge this court to resolve this issue against the petitioners and in favour of the respondent,” the lawyers said.
