Victor Ezeja
Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, has formally filed a petition at the Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja, challenging the declaration of Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the 25th February 2023, presidential election.
Obi is seeking an order from the court to cancel the 25th February presidential election and that a fresh poll be conducted.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelIn the petition filed on Tuesday by Obi and the Labour Party as co-petitioners, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Tinubu, Shettima Kashim (the vice president-elect), and the All Progressives Congress (APC) were joined as the respondents.
They alleged that the election held across the country was fraught with irregularities and substantial violations of the Electoral Act.
The litigants argued that Tinubu and Shettima did not record the lawful votes required for victory.
They are also seeking a declaration from the court that Tinubu and Shettima were not qualified for the contest as at the time of the election.
According to the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, who announced the final results in the early hours of 1 March in Abuja, Tinubu of the APC polled a total of 8,794,726 votes, the highest, to take the first position in the presidential race, while Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) PDP came second with 6,984,520 votes. Obi took third position with 6,101,533 votes while Rabiu Kwankwaso of the NNPP came fourth with 1,496,687 votes, according to the result announced by INEC.
Meanwhile, the Action Alliance and the Allied Peoples Movement and its presidential candidate, Solomon Okanigbuan, have equally filed separate petitions to challenge the outcome of the presidential election.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
