On Wednesday, September 6th, 2023, a Nigerian election tribunal rejected a lawsuit by the Labour Party to invalidate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s election victory in February.
After more than six hours of going through their comprehensive judgement, one of the judges remarked, “This petition is hereby declared unmeritorious.”
Judges ruled against Labour Party candidate Peter Obi on all counts, including his accusations of fraud, violations of the law by election officials, and Tinubu’s ineligibility to run for office.
The Presidential Election Court of Nigeria ruled that one of the petitioners, Peter Obi, had failed to show charges of irregularities during the election.
Ten of his thirteen witnesses were not allowed to testify by the court.
The case
The Abuja court had deliberated for months on lawsuits from the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party, which claim irregularities by electoral authorities, vote fraud, and allege that Tinubu was not qualified to run.
Tinubu’s government dismisses all claims of wrongdoing and appears confident about Wednesday’s decision, highlighting the judiciary’s integrity.
Former Lagos governor Tinubu secured the presidency of Africa’s most populous country by winning 37 percent of the votes in the tightly contested election on February 25. He defeated the PDP’s Atiku Abubakar and Labour’s Peter Obi.
Abubakar from the PDP labelled the vote a “rape of democracy,” and the party claims to have provided evidence that INEC violated electoral law in transmitting results and that Tinubu did not fulfil constitutional requirements.
Obi from Labour sought to appeal to younger voters who expressed their desire for an alternative to the old-guard candidates.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) introduced biometric technology and IReV, a central database for uploading results in real-time, to improve transparency.
INEC acknowledged “glitches” but dismissed claims that the vote was not free and fair.
The five-judge panel dismissed the challenge by the small opposition party, the Allied Peoples Movement, to annul the election, ruling it invalid.
The PDP and Labour are filing two lawsuits, demanding the nullification of the results and the declaration of their candidates as winners, or requesting the court to order a rerun.
Highly anticipated
The courtroom was packed with legal teams in white wigs and black robes, as the judge read through each separate detail of the court’s judgement on the challenges.
Police and defence forces heightened security around the court in the Nigerian capital early on Wednesday, cordoning off access to the building with roadblocks.
Tinubu out of Nigeria for state business
Tinubu took office at the end of May and quickly introduced a set of reforms that the government says will help put Africa’s largest economy back on track.
He is currently in India, actively participating in the G20 summit, and actively seeking foreign investment.
The ruling also comes 100 days after President Bola Tinubu was sworn in as president.
Landmark ruling
The emergence of a major third-party candidate challenged the dominance of Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress (APC) and the PDP, making the 2023 election one of the most contested in the country’s modern history.
Nigeria’s return to democracy from military rule in 1999 has not seen any court overturn a presidential election.
Lawyers who had already predicted that they would most likely take any decision to the Supreme Court for a final ruling.
Nigerians deserve better
Nigerians are struggling with a rising cost of living after the government ended a fuel subsidy programme that kept petrol prices low and freed up the naira currency, as the court ruling shows.
Government officials assert that the policies are necessary to revive the economy, urging patience and providing state governments with funds to help offset the impact.
Tinubu’s government is actively tackling huge security challenges, including jihadists who are still fighting a long war in the northeast, as well as intercommunal clashes and kidnap gangs operating in other regions.
But with Tinubu now playing a vital role in the Niger conflict as ECOWAS’ Chair, many are wondering if he will give priority to the key issues plaguing the country.
