The Presidential Election Tribunal Admits More Exhibits From Peter Obi and the Labour Party
Since Tuesday, May 30, the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) has been hearing petitions challenging the victory of President Bola Tinubu (All Progressives Congress) in the February 25 presidential election.
The petitioner, Peter Obi, has been presenting certified true copies of the INEC election results from various states as evidence to prove his case. The respondents, including INEC, Tinubu, Vice-President Kashim Shettima, and the APC, have objected to the admissibility of some of the documents and promised to give reasons during the final address.
The result sheets contained in Forms EC8A were tendered from the bar by Ben Anachebe, counsel to Obi, from 13 Local Government Areas in Ebonyi state, 13 LGAs in Nasarawa state, 25 LGA’s in Delta state, 23 LGA’s in Kaduna state, 27 LGAs in Imo state, 18 LGAs in Ondo state, 7 LGAs in Sokoto state, and 21 LGAs in Kogi state.
The court admitted the documents despite opposition from the legal team of Independent National Electoral Commission, President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress.
There has been speculations but the chances of Obi winning the case are hard to predict, as the tribunal has not yet given its verdict. However, some analysts and commentators have expressed their opinions on the matter. Some of them are:
Mark Amaza, a senior communications officer at Yiaga Africa, a civil society organisation that observed the election, said Obi faces an uphill task to prove his case. He said Obi would need to show that the BVAS and IReV systems were compromised or manipulated, and that the discrepancies in the results affected the outcome of the election.
Preston Ideh, a co-founder of Stears Data, a data analytics firm, said Obi has a slim chance of winning the case. He said Obi would need to provide credible evidence that Tinubu was not qualified to contest the election, and that Obi had more votes than Tinubu in at least 13 states and Abuja.
Ebilabo Ariye, a legal practitioner and writer, said Obi has a good chance of winning the case. He said Obi has raised valid grounds for challenging Tinubu's victory, such as his alleged drug case in the US, his alleged use of a fake name and certificate, and his alleged violation of the electoral act.
Jamiu Julius Adebayo, a chieftain of the APC based in Ondo state, said Obi has no chance of winning the case. He said Obi's petition is frivolous and baseless, and that Tinubu won the election fair and square.
Atiku Abubakar, the PDP presidential candidate who also contested the election, said Obi made a mistake by leaving the PDP and stands very little chance of winning the presidential election in 2023. He said Obi would need a miracle to win.
Peter Obi had said his political career has been a festival of miracles. The hearing is expected to end on Friday, the 23rd of June.
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