Tinubu ask election tribunal to dismiss APM petition challenging his victory says it lack merit
Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the incoming president, has demanded the dismissal of a petition filed by the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) in an attempt to overturn his election victory.
Tinubu’s counsel, led by Chief Akin Olujinmi, SAN, argued that the petition lacked merit and substance.
The APM’s petition, marked CA/PEPC/04/2023, asserted that Tinubu’s candidature was invalidated due to the withdrawal of Mr. Ibrahim Masari, who had been nominated as the All Progressives Congress’ (APC) vice-presidential candidate.
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The party argued that the three-week interval between Masari’s intention to withdraw, his actual withdrawal, and Tinubu’s replacement of him with Senator Kashim Shettima rendered Tinubu’s candidature null and void at the time of the replacement.
The APM argued that Masari’s initial nomination activated the Constitutionally mandated joint ticket principle, and his subsequent withdrawal rendered the joint ticket invalid.
The APM therefore asked the court to rule that Shettima was ineligible to run as the Vice-Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the February 25 election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), citing violations of Section 35 of the Electoral Act, 2022.
They also sought an order nullifying all votes cast for Tinubu in the presidential election and voiding the INEC-issued Certificate of Return.
The APC, Tinubu, and Shettima filed preliminary objections challenging the petition’s viability and urging the court to dismiss it on the grounds that it lacks merit.
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Tinubu argued that the petitioner had failed to establish a valid basis for challenging his election victory.
The parties adopted their responses to the pre-hearing information sheet during the proceedings.
Under the direction of Justice Haruna Tsammani, the court adjourned the pre-hearing session until Thursday.
The panel instructed the parties to identify the applications and documents to which they would either concede or object during the formal hearing, as well as to outline the issues to be decided in the petition.
Further developments will shed light on the outcome of the petition challenging Tinubu’s election victory.
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