BREAKING: Supreme Court reserves judgement in appeal against Tinubu’s victory

The Supreme Court on Monday reserved its judgement in the appeals filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) challenging the election of President Bola Tinubu in the February 25 presidential poll.

The seven-member panel of justices, led by Justice John Okoro, heard the arguments of the appellants and the respondents and adjourned the case for a later date.

The PDP and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, had approached the apex court to nullify the victory of Tinubu and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), setting aside the judgement of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.

Atiku is also asking the apex court to admit in evidence Tinubu’s educational credentials obtained from the Chicago State University.

The LP and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, had also filed a separate appeal challenging Tinubu’s election. Part of their grounds include asking the court to nullify Tinubu’s election because he did not score 25 per cent of the votes in the Federal Capital Territory.

The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) had dismissed both appeals in September, affirming that Tinubu was duly elected as president and that he met the constitutional requirements for the office. The PEPC also held that the appellants failed to prove their allegations beyond reasonable doubt.

At the Supreme Court, the appellants’ lawyers urged the justices to set aside the judgement of the PEPC and declare their clients as the winners of the election or order a fresh poll. They argued that the PEPC erred in law and in fact by ignoring the evidence they presented to prove their claims.

Counsels to Tinubu, APC and INEC however, asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the appeals for lacking in merit and substance. They maintained that Tinubu won the election fair and square and that he satisfied all the conditions for eligibility. They also contended that the appellants did not provide any credible evidence to substantiate their allegations.

The Supreme Court panel listened to both sides and reserved its judgement, saying it would communicate the date to the parties.