Breaking: APM opens, closes case in petition against Tinubu’s election

The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) opened and closed its case on Wednesday in its petition challenging the declaration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the February 25 presidential election.

The party, in their petition numbered CA/PEPC/04/2023, seeks the nullification of Tinubu’s election on the grounds of the double nomination of the Vice-Presidential candidate of the APC, Sen. Kashim Shettima.

At the resumed hearing on Wednesday, after a futile attempt by President Tinubu and the APC to shut it out of the petition, the petitioner called its lone witness, Aisha Abubakar, who gave evidence in support of its petition.

Led in evidence by the lead counsel to the APM, Gideon Idiagbonya, the witness identified and tendered the five witness statements on oath she deposed to at the registry of the court.

The witness, who is the assistant welfare officer of the APM, also tendered her membership card as evidence in the matter.

Other documents tendered by the petitioner and admitted as exhibits by the court include the declaration of results sheet Form EC8E, a notice of withdrawal of Kabiru Masari as Vice Presidential candidate of APC, Kashim Shettima’s notice of withdrawal as Borno Central Senatorial candidate of APC (Form EC11C), letter of voluntary withdrawal written to APC by Shettima as Senatorial candidate of APC for Borno Central Senatorial District, affidavit in support of personal particulars for nominations of Shettima as Vice Presidential candidate of APC (Form EC9), affidavit of personal particulars for nominations of Kabiru Masari as Vice Presidential candidate of APC (Form EC9), an affidavit in support of personal particulars for nominations of Lawal Kaka Shehu as Borno Central Senatorial candidate of APC.

Following a subpoena, INEC, through its Deputy Director, Legal Drafting, Joan Molle Arabs, produced two documents: Certified True Copies of an online temporary acknowledgement of Kashim Shettima’s profile of Thursday, July 14, 2022, and an online temporary acknowledgement of Lawal Kaka Shehu’s profile of Friday, July 15, 2022. These documents were tendered and admitted as exhibits by the court.

At the end of the cross-examination of the witness by INEC, APC, Tinubu, Kashim Shettima, and Kabiru Masari, who are respondents in the petition, counsel to the petitioner announced the closure of the case.

The respondents, through their counsel, did not call evidence in the petition but relied on the May 26, 2023, judgment of the Supreme Court and a letter notifying INEC of the withdrawal of Shettima as a senatorial candidate of the APC for Borno Central Senatorial district, which was tendered by counsel to INEC, Dr Kemi Pinhero (SAN).

The Supreme Court judgment, tendered in evidence by counsel to the APC, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), dismissed a suit by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against Tinubu’s eligibility to contest the February 25 presidential election on the grounds of the double nomination of his running mate, for lacking in merit.

The petitioner raised objections to the admissibility of the said judgment, but the court admitted it as evidence. After the conclusion of the cross-examination of the witness, the court gave the petitioner ten days to file and serve its final written address, and the respondents were given seven days to file and serve their final written addresses in the petition.

The court then fixed July 14, 2023, for the adoption of final written addresses by the parties in the petition.

Meanwhile, the court could not hear the petition filed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) challenging Tinubu’s election because the 10 a.m. time scheduled for the petition was encroached upon by the APM petition, which was the first matter called on Wednesday.

Consequently, the five-member panel of Justices of the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC), headed by Justice Haruna Tsammani, adjourned further hearing of Atiku Abubakar and PDP’s petition until July 22.