supreme court
‘Why Obi, Atiku Failed To Defeat Tinubu In Supreme Court’ – Dumebi Kachikwu
The leader of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Dumebi Kachikwu, has disclosed the reasons behind the Supreme Court defeat of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour Party (LP).
As previously reported by Anaedoonline.ng, the Supreme Court dismissed Atiku and Obi’s cases against President Bola Tinubu on Thursday.
President Tinubu was declared the victor of the presidential election held on February 25, 2023 by the Supreme Court.
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Speaking about the court’s decision, Kachikwu claimed that Tinubu did not win the 2023 presidential election and that Obi and Atiku were defeated because they were unable to provide concrete proof of their claims.
In an interview with TVC News, Kachikwu stated that the presidential candidates’ lawyers chose to rely on technicalities in an attempt to overturn the election because they had no evidence to gather.
He said, “I believe that’s the hardest part of a lawyer’s job in garnering relevant facts, gathering evidence especially when there’s no evidence to gather. That was the hardest job for the lawyers who took this case to court. How do you gather something that is not there for you to gather?
“Since there was nothing for them to gather, they then looked at technicalities on social media, the court of public opinion. Everywhere they went, they pushed technicalities, they pushed hearsay, they pushed rumours because there was really no evidence to gather.
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“If you say that you won in this place, show the proof. They could not do that, they knew they could not do that, it was very very clear to them from the beginning. So, they sought to just focus on the fact that INEC had technical issues, they sought to focus on other technicalities all in a bid to upturn the election.”
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The Credibility Of The 2023 Presidential Election Will Forever Be Tarnished – Kenneth Okonkwo
Kenneth Okonkwo, the spokesperson for the Labour Party (LP) presidential campaign committee, argued that the Supreme Court’s ruling on the 2023 presidential election merely granted President Bola Tinubu’s government legitimacy rather than democracy.
He claims that although democracy gets its authority from the people, the Tinubu presidency is not a people’s government.
Speaking on Friday during an appearance on Arise TV, Okonkwo responded to the Supreme Court’s ruling affirming President Tinubu’s victory at the polls and in the tribunal. He stated that the judges’ decision in favour of Tinubu was made because they had no other evidence to base their arguments upon except the one presented by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He charged that Nigerians were being forced to accept the results of the 2023 presidential election that INEC had “manufactured.”
Okonkwo went on to question how the petitioners could have supported their claims of improper voting with polling unit results when INEC itself was unable to comply with the law and upload results electronically to the portal in spite of significant resource allocation for that purpose.
The leader of the LP went on to say that the Supreme Court’s decision had ruined his personal faith in the 2023 election and that the election’s credibility will be permanently damaged.
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Speaker Abbas Consoles Atiku, Peter Obi After Supreme Court Verdict, Asks Them To ‘Take Heart’
The candidates of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP) have been comforted by Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, who has urged them to have hope.
Abbas claims that it was not shocking that President Bola Tinubu was found not guilty.
He said, shortly after congratulating the president, “To God be the glory. It is not something unexpected; it is something that we have been waiting for. We know ultimately that what we heard today is what is going to be said, but given the fact that it has come at these early hours, we have nothing to say but to say thank God for Nigeria. Thank God for all the good people of Nigeria who prayed for this particular day for this historic victory.
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“I think this time around, after this pronouncement, we have no excuse but to go back to business as usual, to go back and reset our agenda and see what we can be able to do for the people of Nigeria for the next three and a half or four years”.
Consoling the opposition, he said, “They should take heart there is always one victor at a time; this is Asiwaju’s time, they should all take heart, come and join hands with him. So that we move Nigeria to a greater level.”
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HURIWA Condemns Supreme Court’s Dismissal of PDP’s Petition as a Mockery of Justice
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has strongly criticized the Supreme Court’s dismissal of the petitions filed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi. HURIWA considers this judgment a mockery of Nigeria’s justice system and warns that it could set a troubling precedent for future elections.
In a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA expressed deep concern over the Supreme Court’s decision. Onwubiko asserted that the court’s ruling might inadvertently encourage violence in future elections.
HURIWA argued that the Supreme Court’s judgment, which upheld the election of the incumbent President of Nigeria, was not unexpected. The organization expressed disappointment with the court’s handling of the cases, particularly its refusal to admit fresh evidence presented by Atiku Abubakar regarding the alleged forgery of academic certificates by President Bola Tinubu.
Onwubiko raised concerns that the court’s verdict conveyed a troubling message – that candidates could present fake certificates without consequences, as long as they could manipulate the electoral process or influence judges with financial incentives.
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HURIWA also expressed its earlier prediction that the Supreme Court would rely on technicalities rather than addressing the substance of the cases. The organization believes that the court’s decisions have eroded the credibility of Nigeria’s electoral system.
In conclusion, HURIWA advised Atiku Abubakar to transition into a statesman and contribute to the pursuit of electoral reforms in Nigeria. The organization called for reform that would address issues like the appointment of electoral officials and ensure a more transparent and just electoral process.
The Supreme Court’s decision, according to HURIWA, not only casts a shadow on the integrity of the Nigerian justice system but also highlights the need for comprehensive electoral reforms to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections in the future.
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Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal Of Testimonies Of Atiku’s Witnesses About Rigging
The Supreme Court ruled that the lower court was not at fault for rejecting the testimony of witnesses associated with Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar in 2023.
According to Anaedoonline.ng, Atiku and the PDP challenged the Presidential Election Petition Court’s decision to deny their request to overturn President Bola Tinubu’s election.
The appellants feel wronged by the presidential tribunal’s declaration that the witness testimony was hearsay.
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John Okoro, the panel’s presiding justice, stated that it was “incredible” that the lower court had classified the testimonies as hearsay.
Justice Okoro read from the lower court’s decision that the witnesses may only testify in person at the voting places where they were present.
He ruled: “What they were told is hearsay evidence.
“From the evidence on record, it is indisputable that the witnesses were not present in all the polling units and that their testimonies about others are merely hearsay.”
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Supreme Court Dismisses Atiku and Obi’s Petitions, Affirms Bola Tinubu as Nigeria’s President
The Supreme Court has dismissed the petitions of former presidential candidates Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi for lacking merit. This decision solidifies Bola Tinubu’s position as the President of Nigeria.
The legal battle revolved around the 2023 presidential election, in which Atiku and Obi challenged the outcome. After an extensive legal process, the Supreme Court ultimately ruled that their petitions did not have sufficient merit to overturn the election results.
More details on this ruling and its implications will be provided as they become available.
Supreme Court Rule On Fresh CSU Evidence By Atiku Against Tinubu
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar filed an application to submit new evidence in the appeal contesting President Bola Tinubu’s election, but the Supreme Court decided on Thursday that this action violated the Electoral Act.
The court ruled that Atiku’s application could not be approved since the Electoral Act forbids changing an election petition in this way.
According to Justice John Okoro, the deadline for submitting evidence has gone and cannot be extended. He went on to say that the 180 days allotted for hearing petitions related to elections is set in stone and cannot be changed.
UPDATE: Atiku To File Fresh Suit On Tinubu’s Academic Record
He claims that after the trial court has had 180 days to render a decision, the Supreme Court is unable to apply section 22 of its act.
When Justice Okoro read his ruling, he decided to start by evaluating the motion made by Atiku and the PDP to provide new evidence in the form of academic records of President Bola Tinubu, which was obtained through documents from Chicago State University.
He emphasised how crucial it is to find out if the country’s legal system permits the court to consider new evidence at this point in the case.
The Judge thereafter ruled that “The court found as ridiculous the submission of Atiku Counsel that the 180-day rule does not apply to court of appeal sitting on the presidential election petition.
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“Even an application to amend their petition to accommodate the fresh evidence could not be granted
“The application for fresh evidence cannot be granted. We do not have jurisdiction and there is no pleading or issue for determination in this appeal on allegation or forgery.
“Fresh evidence is not granted as a matter of course.”
The Supreme Court argued that as the appellant did not make a sincere attempt to gather the evidence, the request for new evidence is denied and subsequently dismissed.
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Supreme Court Set to Rule on Presidential Election Appeals by Atiku and Obi Today
The culmination of the legal battle surrounding the presidential election that took place on February 25 is imminent, as a verdict is set to be delivered today by a seven-member panel of the Supreme Court. The appeals of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mr. Peter Obi, who contested the election of President Bola Tinubu, will be ruled upon.
Atiku, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Obi, his counterpart from the Labour Party (LP), are seeking to invalidate President Tinubu’s election victory, where he ran under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Their initial challenge was unsuccessful at the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) on September 6. Subsequently, they turned to the Supreme Court, where their appeals were heard earlier this week. On Monday, all parties, including Atiku, PDP, Obi, LP, Tinubu, APC, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), presented their final arguments. The judgment was reserved by the court, led by Justice Inyang Okoro.
The date of today’s judgment was communicated to all parties by the Supreme Court through a notice signed by one of its Registrars. The seven justices responsible for this landmark decision are Inyang Okoro, Uwani Abba-Aji, Lawal Garba, Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, Abubakar Tijjani, and Emmanuel Akomaye Agim.
Atiku and Obi’s Appeals: Atiku and Obi are contesting INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as the valid winner of the presidential election and are requesting the Supreme Court to overturn the PEPC’s September 6 judgment, which dismissed their claims of election rigging in favor of the APC. Furthermore, they argue that Tinubu did not secure the majority of valid votes during the election.
Notably, there were initially five petitions challenging the declaration of President Tinubu as the election winner, but only three of them reached the Supreme Court. Two of the petitions were withdrawn before being heard by the PEPC, leaving only Atiku and Obi’s appeals.
The Labour Party (LP) has expressed confidence in a favorable ruling, citing the quality and quantity of evidence presented and their convincing arguments before the Supreme Court.
- Supreme Court Adjourns PDP, LP Appeals Challenging Tinubu’s Victory
- Supreme Court Sets Date for Atiku and Obi’s Appeals Against Tinubu’s Election
- ‘Any Of Your Appeal Before Court Will Be Denied’ – US Court Warn Tinubu Over Academic Record
Profiles of the Justices:
- Justice John Okoro Born on July 11, 1959, in Akwa Ibom State, Justice Okoro has served in various legal capacities and was elevated to the Supreme Court on November 15, 2013.
- Justice Uwani Musa Abba-Aji The most senior female jurist on the Supreme Court bench, Justice Abba-Aji was born on November 7, 1956, in Yobe State. She was appointed to the Supreme Court on January 8, 2019.
- Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba Justice Garba, born on November 16, 1958, hails from Zamfara State. He was elevated to the Supreme Court on November 6, 2020.
- Justice Ibrahim Saulawa Born on September 29, 1956, in Katsina, Justice Saulawa has a long and distinguished legal career. He was appointed to the Supreme Court on November 10, 2020.
- Justice Adamu Jauro Justice Jauro, from Gombe State, was born on June 26, 1959. He has held various legal positions and was elevated to the Supreme Court in October 2019.
- Justice Tijjani Abubakar Born on April 15, 1960, in Yobe State, Justice Abubakar has an extensive legal career, including private practice and public service. He was appointed to the Supreme Court in November 2020.
- Justice Emmanuel Agim Justice Agim, born on April 26, 1960, in Cross Rivers State, has served in various high-level legal positions. He was appointed to the Supreme Court in October 2019.
Notable Dissenting Verdicts: Justices Agim and Jauro were responsible for dissenting judgments in a previous case that could have affected the candidacy of former Senate President Ahmed Lawan in the 2023 general election. They maintained that Lawan was not qualified to contest the Yobe North Senatorial election, in contrast to the majority decision that favored Lawan.
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Supreme Court’s Swift Decision Sparks Speculation on Political Motives
The Supreme Court is set to deliver its judgment on the LP/Obi, Atiku/PDP versus INEC, BAT/Shett, and APC cases tomorrow, October 26th, 2023. The swift delivery of this judgment has sparked intense speculation about its true origins and underlying political motivations.
Social media is abuzz with claims that the judgment had been pre-written long before the case even reached the Supreme Court. This raises questions about the independence and impartiality of the judicial process. Skeptics argue that such a quick decision suggests external pressure or influence.
One Twitter user, @MissPearls, commented, “They want to adjudicate on it before the FBI files are released, If not the pressure might be too much.” This statement has fueled further speculation about the potential involvement of international actors in Nigeria’s political landscape.
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While these claims remain speculative, they highlight the deep-seated mistrust in Nigeria’s political and legal systems. The upcoming judgment is expected to have significant implications for the country’s political future, and the circumstances surrounding its speedy delivery only add to the intrigue.
As Nigerians eagerly await the Supreme Court’s decision, one thing is clear – this case has rekindled discussions about the integrity of the nation’s institutions and the complex dynamics at play in Nigerian politics. The true motivations behind the swift judgment may remain a mystery, but it’s a topic that will continue to be discussed and debated in the days to come.
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