The Presidential election petitions tribunal has scheduled Wednesday, 11th of September as the day to rule on the case between Atiku Abubakar (PDP) and President Muhammadu Buhari ( APC).
According to the lead counsel of INEC, Yunus Ustaz Usman (SAN) the electoral body worked in “total compliance with the Electoral Act and the petitioners can never dislodge that.”
Also Read: Buhari Failed To Defend Himself Before Presidential Election Tribunal: PDP
Thus, he requested that the tribunal “to dismiss the petition which was meant to test the river with both legs”.
Also, lead counsel to President Buhari, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) asked the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lacking in evidence, adding that Section 131 of the Nigerian Constitution did not demand certificate to be attached to the documents.
Counsel to the APC, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) said the PDP and Atiku, who alleged electoral irregularities in 119,973 polling units in 8,809 wards in 774 LGs, called only 62 witnesses out of which only five led evidence from the polling units.
However, lead counsel to the PDP and Atiku, Levy Uzoukwu (SAN), asked the tribunal to hold that Section 138(1) of Electoral Act, any candidate who submitted false information would nullify their candidacy.
He added that by the judgment of the Supreme Court in Abdulrauf Moddibbo against Mustapha Usman SC/790/2019 delivered on 30 July, qualifications for election is not a pre-election matter.
He argued that Buhari in his Form CF001submitted to INEC listed three certificates such as First School Leaving Certificate, WAEC, and Cadet certificate from Military School but failed to attach them to the form.
