The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has dismissed the three petitons brought against the election of President Bola Tinubu.
The petitions were brought by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP); and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
Justice Haruna Tsammani, in the lead judgment, affirmed the declaration and return of Tinubu as the winner of the election having scored the highest lawful votes.
He held that none of the three sets of petitioners was able to prove their allegations as contained in the petitions
Two other members of the court’s five-member panel, Justices Stephen Adah and Monsurat Bolaji-Yusuf have also agreed with the lead judgment.
PEPC strikes parts of Atiku/PDP’s petition on Tinubu’s alleged dual citizenship, others
The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has struck out some portions of the reply filed by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) including that where they accused President Bola Tinubu of having dual citizenship.
In a ruling read by Justice Boloukuoromo Ugo, the court also rejected the aspect where the petituoners claimed that Tinubu was not qualified on grounds of alleged criminal conviction and criminal forfeiture in the United States.
The court held that the information contained in the reply was an attempt to smuggle in fresh evidence to cover for the information they failed to provide in their petiton in support if their claim that Tinubu was not qualified.
It also held that the two witnesses statements and other documents filed along with the reply were inadmissible.
The court has also struck out evidence of some witnesses, whose written statements were not filed alsong with the petition, along with documents that were the deted through them.
Labour Party rejects PEPC’s judgement
The Labour Party has rejected the judgement of the five-man panel of the Presidential Election Petition Court led by Justice Haruna Tsammani which dismissed the petition of the party against the election of President Bola Tinubu.
The party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh noted that “justice was not served and it did not reflect the law and the desire of the people.”
The party said its next line of action would be made known after consulting with its lawyers and studying the certified true copy of the Judgement.
The statement read: “The Labour Party watched with dismay and trepidation the dismissal of petitions by the five-man panel of the Presidential Election Petition Court led by Justice Haruna Tsammani today and we reject the outcome of the judgment in its entirety because justice was not served and it did not reflect the law and the desire of the people.
“Nigerians were witnesses to the electoral robbery that took place on February 25, 2023, which was globally condemned but the Tribunal in its wisdom refused to accept the obvious.
“What is at stake is democracy and we will not relent until the will of the people prevail.
We salute the doggedness of our team of lawyers who fearlessly exposed the wrath in our system. We can only weep for democracy in Nigeria but we refuse to give up on Nigeria.
“Details of the party’s position will be presented after consultation with our lawyers after the Certified True Copy of the
“We urge all lovers of democracy to remain focused and hopeful because a new Nigeria is possible.”
PEPC strikes portion of Atiku/PDP’s petition querying Tinubu’s qualification
The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has struck out some aspects of the petition by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) including that where they claimed President Bola Tinubu was qualified to contest the last presidential election.
In a ruling, on some motion by the respondents, the court held that while the petituoners claimed that Tinubu did not meet constitutional threshold to have contested the election, they failed stated what the required qualification was.
The court also struck out some paragraphs where the petitioners accused Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State and one Friday Adejo (described as a Local Government Chairman in Kogi State), but failed to join them as parties to the petition.
It equally struck out some other paragraphs where it found that the petitioners made vague allegations of irregularities and malpractices.
25 percent votes in FCT not mandatory to win presidential election, PEPC rules
The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has held that it was not mandatory for a candidate in a presidential election to score 25 percent of votes in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to be declared the winner.
In a judgment on the petition by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP), the court held that INEC was written to have declared President Bola Tinubu the winner of the election even when he did not score 25 percent of votes in the FCT.
In the lead judgment, Justice Haruna Tsammani held that the FCT did not enjoy any special status in the Constitution and that the Constitution is meant to apply to the FCT as if it is one of the nation’s states.
The court faulted the claim by the petitioners that 25 percent votes were mandatory, describing such a claim as a misrepresentation of the intention of the framers of the Constitution.
While resolving all four issues in the petition against Obi and the LP, the court held that the petition was clearly unmeritorious.
Eight key issues determined so far by Presidential Election Petition Tribunal
The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) has delivered a number of judgement so far in petitions filed against the outcome of the 2023 presidential election.
The five political parties including the PDP, LP, Action Peoples Party (APP), Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and the Action Alliance (AA) had lodged separate petitions before the tribunal seeking to annul Tinubu’s victory.
Justice Haruna Tsammani is the lead judge of the five-man panel presiding over the judgement.
Others include Justice Stephen Adah – Court of Appeal (Asaba division); Justice Monsurat Bolaji-Yusuf – Court of Appeal (Asaba Division); Justice Moses Ugo – Kano division and Justice Abba Mohammed – Ibadan Court of Appeal.
The five jurists will continue to deliberate and possibly vote to take a final decision, in case there are disagreements on issues thrown up at ongoing trial.
Here are the key issues which have been determined so far:

  1. The allegation of double nomination by APM against Vice-President Kashim Shettima holds no water.
  2. LP’s Peter Obi could not prove that his votes were suppressed and that he scored the majority of lawful votes cast.
  3. Out of the 13 witnesses called by Obi/LP, 10 were not accepted by the court.
  4. The tribunal said President Bola Tinubu was not convicted because civil forfeiture is not a criminal matter.
  5. The tribunal said INEC is at liberty to define the mode of results transmission it intends to use.
  6. The tribunal said there is no specific provision for the electronic transmission of election results in the Electoral Act 2022.
  7. Obi/LP failed to prove INEC deliberately refused to upload results.
  8. Obi/LP failed to prove how they were affected by the failure of INEC to electronically transmit results.
    Obi, LP fail to prove allegations of non-compliance, over-voting, others-PEPC
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has declared Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) failed to provide credible evidence to prove their allegations that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) did not substantially comply with the Electoral Act in the conduct of the election and the poll was marred by corrupt practices, including over-voting.
    In a judgment on the petition by Obi and the LP, the court held that the petitioners merely bandied around allegations without providing evidence to support the same.
    The court, in the lead judgment still being read by Justice Haruna Tsammani, has so far resolved three issues out of the four, identified for determination, against the petitioners.
    PEPC says fine by US court did not disqualify Tinubu
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has held that President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettma were qualified to have contested the last presidential election.
    The court held that Tinubu was not disqualified by the fine imposed on him by a United States court following a civil forfeiture proceeding.
    In a judgment on Wednesday in the petition by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP), the court held that the fine imposed by the US court did not qualify as a fine for fraud or dishonesty provided in Section 137(1)(d) of the Constitution.
    It added that the petitioners evidently failed to prove their case that Tinubu was disqualified by virtue of the decision of the US court, adding that Obi and the LP did not comply with the requirement of Section 249(1) and (2) of the Evidence Act in proving conviction outside the country.
    It held that the US court case was in respect of a civil case, not a criminal case, addi g even if it was to be a criminal case, Section 137(1)(e) of the Constitution, such conviction or flne must be within 10 years for s person to be disqualified.
    The court restated its decision in the petition by the APM that Shettima engaged in the double nomination and was not disqualified from contesting the election.
    PEPC rejects EU’s report on 2023 poll tendered by Obi, LP
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has expunged from its records, a copy of the report on the last presidential election made by the European Union (EU) Election Observers Mission tendered by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP).
    The court held that the document was obtained by the petitioners from its registry, which was certified by its staff who is not a person with original custody of the document that was produced by the EU mission.
    The actual copy of the report was earlier tendered by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) while prosecuting their petition before the court.
    The court also rejected the 18088 blurred results sheets tendered by the petitioners on the grounds that they were not tied to any polling units to which the results related, which the petitioners failed to specify in their petition.
    The court held that the petitioners lied that they could not identify the polling units because the result sheets were blurred. It noted that one of the same petitioners’ witnesses actually produced a report in which he analysed the same results, which he claimed to have sourced from INEC’s results viewing platform.
    It further noted that having admitted that its agents signed for and collected copies of the result sheets, the petitioners cannot claim not to know the polling units affected, but merely chose not to specify the polling units in their petition.
    PEPC strikes out evidence by 10 out of Obi/LP’s 13 witnesses
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has struck out the evidence of 10 out of the 13 witnesses called by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) in support of their petition against the election of President Bola Tinubu.
    In a judgment, the court noted that the witnesses, who were subpoenaed at the instance of the petitioners, had their written statements, which contained their evidence, were not filed along or frontloaded with the petition within the 21 days allowed by the Electoral Act 2022.
    The court, in the lead judgment currently being read by Justice Haruna Tsammani, also rejected the documents, including the report of analysis, tendered by the petitioners through the affected 10 witnesses.
    The court also held that some of the witnesses are not only persons with interest in the outcome of the case, the reports they tendered were made during the pendency of the case.
    PEPC strikes out parts of petition by Obi, LP for being vague
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has struck out about 17 paragraphs of the petition by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) for containing vague and generic allegations.
    In a ruling on some motions filed by the respondents to the petition, the court held that in the affected paragraphs, the petitioners made allegations of malpractices and irregularities in the conduct of the election, but failed to provide specific details in support of the allegations.
    The court noted, for instance, that the petitioners failed to show which polling units the malpractices alleged occurred; the number of votes affected; and their polling unit agents who reported the alleged irregularities and malpractices, among others.
    It rejected the respondents’ argument that Obi was not a member of the LP at the time of the election, noting that membership is an internal affair of a political party, which has the sole power to determine who its members are.
    The court held that it did not lie with the respondents to question Obi’s membership of the LP.
    The court also faulted the contention that Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who came second in the election, were necessary parties that ought to be joined in the petition.
    Respondents to the petition are INEC, President Bola Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettma and the APC.
    JUST IN: PEPC begins delivery of judgment in petition by Obi, LP
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has commenced the delivery of judgment in the petition by Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) challenging the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the last presidential election.
    A member of the five-member panel, Justice Abba Mohammed is reading the lead judgment but first dealing with some preliminary motions, challenging the competence of some aspects of the petition.
    PEPC strikes out APM’s petition against Tinubu, Shettima, others
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has struck out the petition by the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
    The PEPC in a ruling, upheld the preliminary objections raised against the competence of the petition by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Bola Tinubu, Kashim Shettima and Kabir Masari.
    Justice Haruna Tsammani, who read the lead ruling, held that the issue of nomination, which is a pre-election matter is outside the scope of the court’s jurisdiction, sitting as an election tribunal.
    He held that the issue ought to have been raised before the Federal High Court, adding that even if it was to be heard by the PEPC, the issue is statute barred.
    Justice Tsammani also held that the petitioner lacked the locus standi to have brought the petition, b cause the law did not allow a political party to query the process adopted by another political party in nominating its candidate.
    The PEPC Chairman held that invalid nomination or double nomination did not qualify as a ground for disqualification in respect of presidential election as provided in sections 131 and 137 of the Constitutional.
    He also held that the Masari, who was nominated as placeholder by the APC (for the position of the Vice President) was no tva necessary party to the petition because he was neither a candidate nor did he win election.
    Justice Tsammani also found that Masari was not a necessary party because no claim was raised against him by the petitioner.
    He is currently considering the petition on the merit.
    PEPC begins delivery of judgment in APM’s petition
    The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has commenced the delivery of judgment in the petition filed by the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
    The APM is, in its petition, seeking the nullification of the election of President Bola Tinubu on the grounds that the Vice President, Kashim Shettma was not validly nominated.
    The petitioner alleged that Shettima was not qualified to contest the last presidential election because he allegedly submitted himself for double nomination in violation of Section of 35 of the Electoral Act.
    There is tight security at the Court of Appeal Complex located in the Three Arms Zone, Shehu Shagari Way, Central Business District of Abuja, as the Presidential Election Petition Court gets set to deliver judgment.
    The judgment is three cases challenging the outcome of the Feb.25 presidential election.
    Coming about a month after the court heard the closing arguments of parties to the petitions and about two weeks to the expiration of the statutory 180-day lifespans within which the cases filed in March must be heard and determined.
    The five-member panel of the court is headed by Haruna Tsammani had reserved judgements on the petitions after hearing the closing arguments of the parties to the cases in early August.