The eagerly awaited verdict of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) regarding the 2023 presidential election outcome is scheduled to be pronounced today, on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, by the panel of tribunal judges.
It is worth noting that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had previously declared Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the victor of the polls conducted on February 25.
However, this outcome was legally contested by Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar, who respectively ran as presidential candidates for the Labour Party (LP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the election. Additionally, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) also challenged Tinubu’s victory.
In confirmation of this significant event, Umar Bangari, the Registrar of the Court of Appeal, issued a statement on Monday, announcing the delivery of the judgment on the 2023 presidential election by the Tribunal on Wednesday. Three distinct petitions will be addressed:
1. CA/PEPC/03/23: Involving Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party versus the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and three others.
2. CA/PEPC/04/2023: Featuring the Allied Peoples Movement versus the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and four others.
3. CA/PEPC/05/23: Focused on Abubakar Atiku of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) versus the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and two others.
The statement further highlighted that all judgments will be broadcasted live, but access to the courtroom premises will be strictly regulated. Only accredited individuals, lawyers, and political party representatives will be permitted inside the courtroom.
In anticipation of the judgment, security agencies, including the military and the police, have pledged to take decisive action against any individual or group that attempts to incite disturbances.
The five-member presidential election tribunal, presided over by Justice Haruna Simon Tsamani, had previously endorsed the final written submissions of the involved parties in preparation for the judgment’s delivery.
