The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, sitting in Abuja, has admitted results from eight states in the February 25, poll, presented by the Labour Party, LP, presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi, at the resumed hearing in the case on Monday.
Obi and Labour Party, are in the petition, among others, challenging the declaration of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, by Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as winner of the February 25, poll.
The results from the eight states admitted include Ebonyi, Nasarawa, Delta, Kaduna, Imo, Ondo, Sokoto and Kogi.
The Justice Haruna Tsammani-led five-member panel, admitted the results in evidence in the on-going hearing.
The court will continue further hearing on Tuesday.
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Obi and Labour Party, are contending in the petition that Tinubu, the APC’s presidential candidate didn’t win majority of the lawful vote cast in the February 25, poll.
They are further contending that Tinubu, was not qualified Ab initio to contest the election.
Obi and LP are further challenging Tinubu’s eligibility to contest the presidential election, alleging that he was previously indicted and fined the sum of $460,000.00 by the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, in Case No: 93C 4483, for an offence involving dishonesty and drug trafficking.
The petitioners are further contending that INEC was in the course of the conduct of the presidential poll, mandatorily required to prescribe and deploy technological devices for the accreditation, verification, continuation and authentication of voters and their particulars as contained in its Regulations.
Arguing that election was invalid by reason of corrupt practices and non- compliance with the provision of Electoral Act, 2022, Obi and LP contended that INEC acted in breach of its own Regulations and Guidelines.
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They are, therefore, praying the court to among other things, declare that all the votes recorded for Tinubu and the APC, were wasted votes owing to his non-qualification/disqualification.
“That it be determined that on the basis of the remaining votes (after discountenancing the votes credited to Tinubu, Obi scored a majority of the lawful votes cast at the election and had not less than 25 percent of the votes cast in at least 2/3 of the States of the Federation, and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and satisfied the constitutional requirements to be declared the winner of the 25th February 2023 presidential election.
“That it be determined that Tinubu having failed to score one-quarter of the votes cast at the presidential election in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, was not entitled to be declared and returned as the winner of the presidential election held on February 25, 2023.
Meanwhile, INEC, Tinubu and APC have challenged the petition, praying the court to dismiss the suit and uphold the results announced by INEC for the February 25, poll.
