Tinubu Cleared by the Court for Monday inauguration, PDP, LP in trouble

Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the President-elect, is now all set for his inauguration on Monday, following the Supreme Court’s dismissal of the Peoples Democratic Party’s lawsuit. The suit aimed to disqualify the ticket that produced Bola Tinubu as President-elect and Kashim Shettima as Vice President-elect in the 2023 presidential election.

A Federal High Court in Abuja refused to issue an interim injunction to halt Tinubu’s inauguration. The plaintiffs alleged that the President-elect had lied under oath in the form submitted to INEC.

However, the Supreme Court confirmed the eligibility of Tinubu and Shettima to contest the presidential election held on February 25. The PDP, in their appeal, sought Tinubu’s disqualification based on Shettima’s alleged double nomination, both for the Borno Central Senatorial seat and the vice-presidential position.

The PDP argued that Shettima’s dual nomination violated various provisions of the Electoral Act, of 2022, and requested the court to nullify Tinubu and Shettima’s candidacy. They also sought an order for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remove their names from the list of nominated candidates.

In response, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), representing the defendants, argued that the PDP had no standing to interfere in the nomination process of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held that the PDP’s appeal lacked merit. Justice Adamu Jauro, delivering the lead judgment, upheld the previous decisions of the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had both dismissed the case.

The court ruled that the PDP had no legal right to intervene in the internal affairs of the APC, which nominated Tinubu and Shettima as its candidates. The court emphasized that political parties should not meddle in the affairs of other parties.

The court agreed with the respondents that the Constitution and Electoral Act did not confer the right to challenge Shettima’s candidacy on the grounds of double nomination. They stated that only aspirants who participated in a party’s primary election could contest a candidate’s nomination.

The court also reprimanded the PDP for filing a frivolous appeal, deeming it a waste of judicial time. It awarded damages of N2 million in favor of the respondents and advised counsel to discourage their clients from filing similar suits in the future.

The court’s decision was not a setback.

Meanwhile, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the February 25 election, Atiku Abubakar, said the dismissal of the appeal was not a setback in the party’s quest for justice in the election petition tribunal.

Atiku reiterated the resolve of his legal team to prove that the election of Tinubu and Shettima was fraudulent and a violation of the nation’s constitutional requirements.

In a statement he signed, Atiku said, “The Supreme Court’s dismissal of the case of the PDP is not a setback to my quest for justice. Our legal team is primed to robustly prove that the election of February 25 was fraudulent, did not comply with the constitutional requirements and the electoral guidelines of the Independent National Electoral Commission, and that the announced winner was not even qualified to contest the poll.

“The battle for democracy and the enthronement of a new order to spur growth and development in Nigeria is one to which I have committed my all and for which I am not ready to walk away at this point when our nation is at crossroads. We know that sooner than later, our esteemed Justices will make the pronouncement that will serve as a befitting requiem for mandate bandits.

“I urge my supporters to exercise patience and conduct themselves peaceably as we diligently conduct our litigation at the Presidential Election Tribunal Court.”

Meanwhile, the PDP through its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba promised to issue a formal statement, noting that the party was yet to read the judgment. “We cannot comment now because we have not even read the judgment. When we do, we will make our position known,” Ologunagba said

In regards to the Labour Party’s preparedness to proceed with its petition at the tribunal, Mr. Obiorah Ifoh, the acting National Publicity Secretary of the party, stated that they are not concerned with the outcome of the Supreme Court judgment regarding Shettima. Instead, they are focused on the election process and confident of victory at the tribunal. Ifoh emphasized that their court case is distinct from the one the PDP lost at the Supreme Court, and they believe the outcome of that case will not affect theirs. He expressed their hope for justice and reiterated that the events of the day have no significance to their case.

Yunusa Tanko, the Chief spokesperson for the Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Council, expressed disappointment with the judgment, stating that Nigeria’s judiciary no longer represents the last hope of the masses. Tanko lamented that relying on the judiciary to improve democracy only leads to more difficult situations. He found it painful that if the judiciary fails to act in the best interest of democracy, the consequences are severe.

Festus Keyamo (SAN), the spokesman for the dissolved APC Presidential Campaign Council, responded to the Supreme Court judgment by stating that any serious lawyer knew from the beginning that Atiku and his party had no valid case. Keyamo’s argument was based on a settled legal principle that prohibits one party from interfering in the internal affairs of another political party. He also clarified that Shettima had notified his party about his withdrawal from the senate race before being nominated as a vice presidential candidate. Keyamo concluded that there was no case, to begin with, and that the confidence of Atiku and the PDP was unfounded. He highlighted the judge’s finding that Shettima did not seek the double nomination, as he had already withdrawn before he was nominated vice president. Keyamo stated that the APC would wait for the tribunal petitions to reach their full course.

In a related development, the Federal High Court in Abuja declined to issue an interim injunction to prevent the swearing-in of Bola Tinubu, the president-elect of Nigeria, on May 29. The court dismissed a suit brought by three plaintiffs who alleged that Tinubu had lied under oath in his qualifications submitted to INEC and that he had misrepresented his gender and birth year. The court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case and deemed it unconstitutional, frivolous, and vexatious. The plaintiffs were deemed to lack the legal right to bring the case, as only an aspirant could challenge the qualification or nomination of a candidate in an election. The court further stated that since the election had concluded, only the Court of Appeal had the jurisdiction to entertain cases arising from the presidential election. The court criticized the plaintiffs for wasting its time and considered the action an abuse of the court process, which could potentially destabilize the country’s democracy. The court warned that the lawyers involved could face disciplinary action for dragging the judiciary into disrepute.

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