President Bola Tinubu has said the appeal by the presidential
candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, is lacking in merit, substance and
good faith.
Tinubu who said Obi’s appeal which was based on allegations
dismissed at the election petition tribunal, argued that the presidential
election was peacefully conducted all over the country, and the results of
elections were carefully and accurately recorded in the various forms of EC8As.
This was contained in a response by his lead counsel, Wole
Olanipekun, SAN, to the appeal filed by Obi challenging the decision of the
tribunal.
He said, ” The entire petition was nothing but a jamboree of sorts, which was prosecuted more in the media than in the courtroom and the lower court, being a court of law and not of sentiments, dutifully threw away their petition after a painstaking consideration of same.
if considered from every angle, is lacking in merit,
substance, and good faith.
“Be it noted that, unlike previous election petitions over
which this honourable court has presided (in time past) and made far-reaching
pronouncements on diverse issues, including but not limited to ballot box
snatching, vote buying, voters’ intimidation, interference by the military,
thuggery, ballot stuffing, violence, disenfranchisement, non-recording of votes
in form EC8A, which is the building block or the base of the pyramid, and such
other electoral vices, this appeal arising from a dismissed petition, the main
grouse of which is that, while the presidential election was peacefully
conducted all over the country, and results of elections carefully and
accurately recorded in the various form EC8As, some unidentified and
unspecified results, even in the appellants’ brief were not uploaded
electronically to the IREV portal. ”
He noted that Obi failed to prove his allegations of
non-compliance and corrupt practices as required by law.
Tinubu said, “Instructively, however, the lower court,
appreciating that it is not a court of final instance, proceeded to determine
the petition on its merit, while itemising several monumental failures of the
petitioners to provide any evidence in support of their much-touted case.
“While affirming the election and declaration of the 2nd
respondent at the referenced presidential election, the lower court also found
that the appellants did not prove any of their allegations on the requisite
standards of proof. ”
In his reply on the 25 percent requirement in the FCT,
Tinubu told the apex court that Obi was on a “fishing expedition”.
He said, “The other very remote contention is that the 2nd
respondent did not score 25 percent of the votes recorded at the Federal
Capital Territory.
“With much respect to the appellants, the petition is more
of a fishing expedition; much more of evocation of thunder without dews. ”
Tinubu, however, said the tribunal judgment was in order,
adding that, “It is against the well-considered judgment of the lower court
that the appellants have brought this appeal.”
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