Tinubu’s Presidential Election Victory Under Threat as Court Hears APM’s Petition
President Bola Tinubu and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), have lost their bid to stop the hearing of a petition filed by the Allied People’s Movement (APM) against his qualification for the February 25, 2023, presidential election.
The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) on Monday rejected Tinubu’s request to use a Supreme Court judgment to dismiss the APM’s petition.
Tinubu, who was represented by his lead counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, had argued that the apex court had already resolved the sole issue raised by the APM in its judgment on May 26, 2023, in a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He said the Supreme Court had affirmed his eligibility to contest the election despite the withdrawal of his initial running mate, Ibrahim Masari.
He urged the PEPC to invoke the spirit and letters of the Supreme Court judgment to terminate the APM’s petition, which he said lacked merit and was an abuse of court process.
The APC, through its counsel, Charles Edosomwen SAN, also supported Tinubu’s position and asked the court to strike out the petition.
However, the presiding judge of the PEPC, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, disagreed with Tinubu and APC and held that the APM could not be shut out in the face of fair hearing.
He said Tinubu and APC should keep their objections against the petition to the final address stage of the court’s proceedings. He said the court would hear the petition on its merit and decide whether or not it was affected by the Supreme Court judgment.
The APM, through its lawyer, Mr Gideon Ijiagbonya, had informed the court that it had received a copy of the Supreme Court judgment and that it did not affect its petition.
He said the APM was challenging Tinubu’s qualification on other grounds apart from his running mate’s withdrawal. He said he needed an adjournment till June 26 to obtain a vital document from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prove his case.
Justice Tsammani granted a short adjournment and fixed Wednesday, June 21, for the hearing of the petition.
The APM is seeking to nullify Tinubu’s election on the ground that he did not meet the constitutional requirements for contesting for president. The party is also alleging that Tinubu and APC engaged in electoral malpractices and fraud during the election.
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