Atiku Abubakar Fights Tinubu’s Victory with Petition to Election Tribunal

Summary:

• Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate for the PDP, has filed a petition with the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to question Bola Tinubu’s election as president-elect of Nigeria.
• Both parties question Tinubu’s victory in the February 25, 2023, election and are seeking a new election or the issuance of a fresh certificate of return to Obi.
• Legal problems in Nigeria have caused people to worry that the country’s government might become unstable.

(MandyNews.com) – Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of Nigeria’s main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has filed a petition with the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in a bid to contest the declaration of Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the president-elect of Nigeria.

Silas Joseph Onu, a member of the Atiku Legal Team, confirmed the filing on Tuesday evening.

This legal challenge comes on the heels of the Labour Party (LP) and its candidate, Peter Obi, who filed a similar petition at the election petitions tribunal in Abuja earlier in the day.

The move calls into question Tinubu’s status as the winner of the presidential election on February 25, 2023, and makes the situation even more tense. 

The petition filed by the PDP, marked CA/PEPC/03/2023, lists the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Tinubu, his running mate Senator Kashim Shettima, and the APC as the 1st through 4th respondents.

The petitioners want the tribunal to say that Tinubu was not properly elected by a majority of legal votes cast during the election. Also, they want a court order to force INEC to take back the certificate of return that was given to the APC candidate and give a new one to Obi. 

Even though the PDP hasn’t said much about why they are challenging the election yet, it is likely that they will show proof of alleged election fraud or other irregularities to back up their case.

The results of these petitions could have big effects on Nigeria’s politics, especially if the tribunal agrees with the claims and calls for a new election.

Both Atiku Abubakar and the PDP have filed lawsuits against the results of the presidential election. This has made Nigerians more worried about the possibility of political instability after the election.

The country has a history of voting disputes, and some people are worried that recent events could make things worse and lead to unrest.

The claims made by the PDP and LP will now be looked at by the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, which is in charge of hearing and deciding on petitions about presidential elections.

Legal experts think that the tribunal will carefully look at all of the evidence before making a decision that could affect Nigeria’s political future in a big way.

International observers and groups have also called for a fair and open legal process to settle the disagreements over the election results. They stress how important it is to follow the law and keep Nigeria’s democratic institutions from falling apart.

Even though the tribunal’s hearings are still going on, it’s not clear how this legal battle will affect Nigeria’s politics.

In the past few years, the country has made a lot of progress, with improvements in governance, economic growth, and efforts to fight corruption. But the problems caused by these election disputes show how important it is to keep an eye on things and make changes to keep Africa’s most populous country stable and growing.

In the coming weeks, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal will be closely watched by Nigerians and the international community alike.

The outcome of the lawsuits filed by Atiku Abubakar, the PDP, and the LP will definitely change the political landscape of the country and could be a test of how well Nigeria’s democracy works.