In a prelude to the anticipated verdict scheduled for Wednesday from the Presidential Election Petition Court, the Presidency has officially conveyed that President Bola Tinubu remains unfazed by the impending judgment.
This assurance was affirmed by presidential spokesperson Ajuri Ngelale during a Television interview on Monday; “He (Tinubu) is not worried simply because he knows he won the election.”
Ngelale further emphasized that the President has no intentions of resorting to threats against judicial officers, firmly asserting that the judiciary holds the authority to render impartial decisions solely founded on the merits of the case at hand.
“The President sees no need to threaten judicial officers. He sees no need to raise speculations against the integrity of judicial officers; he believes in the sanctity and integrity of the Nigerian judicial system, he believes the great men and women on the panel will make their decisions based only on the fact before them.
“He will continue to ensure that no matter what the outcome of the judgment is, he does his part and ensure that our institutions continue to be respected, not just by him, but all actors,” Ngelale added.
While President Bola Tinubu is currently attending the G-20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi, India, the Tribunal is poised to announce its judgments on cases challenging his victory as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the February 25, 2023 election.
Registrar of the Court of Appeal, Umar Bangari, disclosed on Monday, that interested television stations will have the opportunity to broadcast the proceedings live.
Notably, Tinubu’s election is being contested by Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP), Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM). Atiku, a former Vice President, secured the second position in the fiercely contested poll, while Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, secured third place.
Two separate petitions, identified as CA/PEPC/05/2023 and CA/PEPC/03/2023, have been presented to the court. These petitions have been filed by former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Peter Obi, who ran as the candidate of the Labour Party (LP).
On August 1, the five-member panel of the court, presided over by Justice Haruna Tsammani, granted approval for judgment in the cases after all involved parties concluded their presentations of final briefs of argument.
During the presentation of their final written address, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), represented by a legal team led by Chief Chris Uche, SAN, beseeched the presidential election tribunal to assert that President Tinubu did not meet the qualifications required to participate in the presidential election conducted on February 25. They further implored the tribunal to invalidate the entire outcome of the presidential election, calling for a rerun or fresh contest.