The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal, on Wednesday, rejected 15 out of the 27 witnesses presented by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, for failing to establish his case against the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the February 25 presidential election.

The Tribunal gave the verdict through one of the five-man panel, Justice Stephen Adah.

The Tribunal rejected the testimonies of the 15 witnesses on the grounds that the petitioner failed to file their statements on oath along with the petition.

It further disclosed that the petitioner could not file the statements on oath before the close of the 21-day window given from the date election result was announced.

Dismisses PDP’s petitions questioning Tinubu’s qualification to contest

The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal has struck out some aspects of the petitions presented by the People Democratic Party’s presidential candidate in the February polls, Atiku Abubakar. ⁣
⁣
The struck out portions include those in which the PDP claimed that Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress was unqualified to contest the last presidential election.⁣
⁣
In the judgment on some motion by the respondents, the court held that while the petitioners claimed that Tinubu did not meet the constitutional threshold to enable him to contest the election, they failed to state what the required qualifications were. ⁣
⁣
The tribunal also expunged 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 also struck out other paragraphs where it found that the petitioners made vague allegations of irregularities and malpractices.⁣
⁣
Announcing this, Justice Stephen Adah said, “The witness statements being incompetent are, hereby, struck out and as point because of this court.⁣
⁣
“The further consequence of that decision is that given the provision of paragraph 41 sub three of the same first schedule to the electoral act 2022, stating that there shall be no oral examination of a witness during his evidence in chief except to lead the witness to adopt his written deposition and tender in evidence or disputed documents or other exhibits referred to in this deposition.⁣
⁣
“It follows that all the evidence including evidence in cross-examination and all documents, reports…are incompetent, and are hereby expunged from the records of this court.”⁣

Dismisses PDP’s allegations of forgery, conviction against Tinubu

The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal has dismissed the allegations of forgery and conviction levelled against President Bola Tinubu by the Peoples Democratic Party and its 2023 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The court, while ruling on motion by the respondents held that though the petitioners claimed that Tinubu did not meet the constitutional requirement to have vied in the election, they did not spell out what the requirement was.

A member of the five-man panel, Moses Ugo, also struck out some paragraphs in which the petitioners accused Kogi State Governor and one Friday Adejo, said to be a Local Government Chairman in Kogi State of electoral irregularities but failed to join them as parties in the petition.