Pres. tribunal: PDP tenders result sheets today as Prof Nwabueze represents Atiku

Nigeria’s foremost constitutional lawyer, Professor Ben Nwabueze
(SAN) appeared at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal for
the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate,
Atiku Abubakar today.

Professor Nwabueze’s appearance on Thursday coincided with the
tendering of result sheets used in the February 23 presidential
election by the PDP at the tribunal.

After reaching for the mic, Prof Nwabueze requested the panel to
allow him make his address while seated. The chairman of the panel,
Justice Mohammed Garba accepted his request.

The tendering of the documents and forms used in the election
followed the end of the pre-hearing session and beginning of the
main hearing of the petition today.

The five-member panel of justices on Wednesday also adopted the
agreement of parties for Atiku and PDP to make their case within 10
days while the defendants will make theirs within six days. Thus
the petitioners are also expected to call witnesses in week two of
the main hearing.

On Wednesday, the tribunal dismissed an application by Atiku and
PDP seeking to set aside the proceedings of June 11 in which it
failed to reply to the motion of APC filed on May 15.

Atiku and PDP had filed a counter affidavit to the APC motion
dated May 14, 2019, which its lawyer Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) withdrew
and filed a similar motion of May 15, 2019, seeking to strike out
some states such as Borno, Yobe, Niger, Katsina, Bauchi, Jigawa,
Kaduna, Kanu, Gombe and Kebbi listed among the locations where
electoral malpractices occurred.

APC also argued that Atiku and PDP’s petition is incompetent and
contains errors, adding that the individuals and institutions such
as Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Nigerian Army, and Nigerian
Police, who were alleged to have committed electoral offences, were
not joined in the petition.

Atiku and PDP, through their lead counsel, Levy Uzoukwu (SAN),
however did not file a counter affidavit to the fresh motion within
the seven days provided by the law.

They contended that the failure of the tribunal to dismiss the
motion which was withdrawn without prior notice, is a violation of
the right to fair hearing.

In a lead ruling by the chairman of the panel, Justice Mohammed
Garba held that the proceeding of June 11 was conducted within the
requisite jurisdiction of the tribunal in line with the Nigerian
Constitution 1999 and does not constitute a denial of fair hearing
to the PDP.

The panel however did not grant Atiku and PDP alternative relief
for the extension of time to file a counter affidavit to the
pending motion of May 15 because the matter is no longer a live
issue before the tribunal, having been appealed against at the
Supreme Court.

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