The Presidential Election Petition Court has indefinitely adjourned the reserved judgment in the petition filed by the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) seeking the disqualification of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu from the February 25 presidential election on the grounds of unlawful nomination.
After the parties in the case presented their final arguments, the Court decided to postpone its verdict without setting a specific date.
APM is urging the Court to nullify Tinubu’s election, claiming that his Vice Presidential candidate, Kashim Shetima, allowed himself to be nominated twice for two different constituencies in an unlawful manner. Shetima was initially nominated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the candidate for Borno Central Senatorial District. Subsequently, after the withdrawal of Kabiru Masari, who was the initial Vice Presidential candidate to Tinubu, Shetima was nominated by the same party as the Vice Presidential candidate.
APM alleges that Shetima and the APC violated the Electoral Act by engaging in the alleged double nomination.
During the final address proceedings, APM, represented by its counsel Andrew Malgwu SAN, urged the Court to invoke relevant laws and nullify the nomination of Tinubu and Shetima on the grounds of unlawful, illegal, and unjustifiable nomination.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the first respondent in the petition, requested the Court to dismiss the petition for lacking merit.
APC, represented by Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi SAN, asked the Court to dismiss the petition on all grounds, deeming it frivolous, irritating, and unwarranted.
Fagbemi argued that the petition was baseless, especially considering a Supreme Court judgment that prevents other political parties from interfering in the internal affairs of another party, particularly regarding the issue of nomination.
Similarly, Tinubu and Shetima, represented by legal luminary Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, contended that the APM’s petition should not have been filed in the first place and demanded its outright dismissal.
Olanipekun informed the Court that the petition should have been honorably withdrawn as soon as the Supreme Court pronounced that no party has the right to interfere in how another party nominates its candidates for elective offices.
Following the proceedings, Presiding Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani announced an indefinite adjournment of the judgment.
Justice Tsammani assured the numerous lawyers present in the court that they would be notified once the judgment is ready.