By Kayode Lawal
The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, has ordered the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Obi and his party to present their joint petition against the February 25 presidential election within three weeks.
The Court also ordered the President-elect, who is the target of the petition, Bola Tinubu to defend his victory at the election along with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, within five days.
Obi through his counsel, Professor Awa Kalu, SAN had requested for seven weeks to establish their allegations against the disputed election that produced Tinubu.
Chairman of the Court, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani issued the order on Tuesday while presenting the pre-hearing report of the Court.
Among others, Justice Tsammani ordered that Obi must open his petition for hearing on May 30 and end same on June 23.
The Court said that it arrived at the decision because of the limited time within which the petition must be decided.
Immediately after the order of the Court was handed down, Obi who was in court to witness the proceedings took permission from the court and left on the ground that they were going to prepare for the full-blown hearing of the petition.
Meanwhile, the Court has ordered the consolidation of the petitions so as to ensure expeditious hearing of the petitions.
The Court threw out the objection of Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress, APC, against the consolidation.
The Court upheld the position of the Atiku Abubakar on the consolidation of the three petitions challenging the qualifications and declaration of Tinubu as winner of the February 25 presidential election.
The Court in the pre-hearing session report presented on Tuesday by Justice Stephen Jonah Ada announced the consolidation of the three petitions instituted by Atiku, Obi and the Allied People’s Movement, APM.
The Court agreed with lawyers to Atiku that given time limitation, it was proper and appropriate to merge them in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
Justice Ada while announcing the consolidation said that the Court took the decision because the three petitions are related to the same election and same declaration of results.
Tinubu had vehemently opposed the consolidation move on the ground that interest of justice would not be met.
But Atiku and PDP who saw the objection to consolidation as a ploy to delay quick disposal of the three petitions, had prayed the Court to adopt the move so as to be able to do substantial justice to their respective grievances against Tinubu’s election.
Meanwhile, the Court has given Atiku and PDP three weeks within which to argue their complaints against the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC on the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the presidential election.
They are also within the period present their objections against the qualifications of Tinubu for the election and his subsequent return as winner of the 2023 presidential poll.
