The Nigerian Supreme Court, on Thursday, affirmed President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as the valid winner of the presidential election that was held in the country on February 25.
The apex court, in its lead judgement that was read by Justice Inyang Okoro, held that there was no merit in the petition that a former President and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, filed to nullify the outcome of the election.
It held that Atiku did not prove that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, did not substantially comply with provisions of the Electoral Act, in the conduct of the election.
Nevertheless, it stressed that INEC’s failure to electronically transmit results of the election, denied the electorates the opportunity to follow and cross-check results that were eventually uploaded.
The Supreme Court also dismissed as lacking in merit, the appeal of the candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, filed to nullify President Bola Tinubu’s election.
In a unanimous decision by a seven-member panel of Justices, the apex court held that Obi’s appeal deserved to be dismissed.
In the lead judgement that was delivered by Justice Inyang Okoro, the court held that issues Obi raised in his case were already decided in a separate appeal that was filed by the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.