Presidential Election tribunal continues hearing today, Atiku, Obi want live broadcast of proceedings; Obi’s petition adjourned till May 10

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal will continue hearing today (Tuesday) on the petitions challenging the declaration of Bola Tinubu as President-elect.

It will hear petitions from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) challenging the presidential election.

The tribunal, sitting at the Court of Appeal Abuja, had commenced hearing on Monday around 9:15 am and heard a total of three petitions from the Action Alliance, the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and petition from the Action Peoples Party (APP).

It, however, adjourned the hearing of the petitions from LP, Obi and APP to enable the parties to raise and agree on issues for determination. All parties are expected to identify issues they would be objecting to or agreeing with before the next pre-hearing session.

Presided by Justice Haruna Tsammani, the tribunal has five-man panel of justices including Justice Stephen Adah of the Court of Appeal Asaba division; Justice Misitura Bolaji-Yusuf, Court of Appeal, Asaba division; Justice Boloukuoromo Ugoh of Kano division and Justice Abba Mohammed of Ibadan Court of Appeal.

Tsammani, in his opening statement, said the panel will deliver justice, and in a timely manner. He sought cooperation of lawyers and senior advocates of Nigeria (SANs) who filed the court room beyond capacity.

Atiku and the PDP had in their application dated May 5 specifically prayed the tribunal for “an order directing the court’s Registry and the parties on modalities for admission of media practitioners and their equipment into the courtroom.”

The petitioners had in their applications filed by their lawyers led by Chris Uche, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria ( SAN), averred that their applications are predicated on the fact that the matter under dispute is of “national concern.”

According to them, “The matter before the Honourable Court is a dispute over the outcome of the Presidential Election held on 25th February 2023, a matter of national concern and public interest, involving citizens and voters in the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, who voted and participated in the said election, and the International Community as regards the workings of Nigeria’s Electoral Process.”

They are also contending that being a unique electoral dispute with a peculiar constitutional dimension, it is a matter of public interest whereof millions of Nigerian citizens and voters are stakeholders with a constitutional right to receive.

“An integral part of the constitutional duty of the court to hold proceedings in public is a discretion to allow public access to proceedings either physically or by electronic means.

“With the huge and tremendous technological advances and developments in Nigeria and beyond, including the current trend by this Honourable Court towards embracing electronic procedures, virtual hearing and electronic filing, a departure from the Rules to allow a regulated televising of the proceedings in this matter is in consonance with the maxim that justice must not only be done, but must be seen to be done.”

According to them, “Televising court proceedings is not alien to this Honourable Court, and will enhance public confidence.”

They recalled that the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) had expressed similar concerns in its communiqué at the end of its National Executive Committee meeting in Birnin Kebbi March 23, where they had called on the judiciary to allow for live broadcast of court hearings on election petition, particularly the presidential election cases.

This position was supported by lawyers under the aegis of Leaders of Thoughts and Legal Icons, who also noted the importance of the case to public interest.

To this end, the group had invited Nigerians to sign up on an appeal on a non-partisan online platform, in support of the initiative.

This position was also backed by the Obi/Datti Presidential Campaign Council (PCC)

Acting National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party (LP), Obiora Ifoh, while speaking with BusinessDay on the issue, counseled the tribunal on the need to televise the proceedings of the tribunal, as it will “give credibility to the outcome of the proceedings.”

According to Ifoh, “With such innovation, there will be greater public confidence in the outcome of proceedings. Nigerians will believe them more if the members of the public are carried along.

“Don’t forget that there is so much trust deficit in public place at the moment. So, I wish they agree to make the proceedings public real time.”

No date has however, been fixed for hearing in the fresh application.

Obi’s Prayers

Obi and LP want the tribunal to determine that the 2nd Respondent (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 25 February 2023

That the 2nd Respondent (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 25 February 2023.

The nomination of Kashim Shettima as vice presidential candidate was defective as he did not withdraw from his nomination as a senatorial candidate of his party before accepting to serve as vice presidential candidate of Tinubu.

That the president-elect was not duly elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast at the time of the election. They alleged that he was linked to drug trafficking by US court.

The conduct of fresh elections.