Presidential Election: Buhari, APC Urge Garba-Led Tribunal to Dismiss PDP, Atiku’s Petition

President Muhammadu Buhari and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Monday urged the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, to strike out the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its Presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, challenging his victory in the February 23 presidential election.

Also, the tribunal struck out the petition filed by the Coalition for Change challenging Buhari’s election following the petitioner’s withdrawal.

It was recalls that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had declared Buhari winner of the Presidential poll.

Atiku and his party had, in their petition which has INEC, Buhari and the APC as first to third respondents, asked the tribunal to nullify Buhari’s election on the ground of alleged malpractices and gross violation of Electoral Act 2010, as amended.

When the Tribunal resumed hearing in the matter Monday, counsel to the electoral body, Yunus Ustaz Usman asked the tribunal to dismiss the petition challenging Buhari’s declaration as winner of the said election on the ground that it failed to comply with paragraph 18 (1) first schedule of the Electoral Act.

In his second application, INEC’s lawyer asked the tribunal to strike out some parts of the petition and at the end of the day, the entire petition.

He also asked the five-member panel of the tribunal to strike out Atiku and PDP’s petition for failure to join the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osibanjo, in the suit.

In his own submission, counsel to President Buhari, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) prayed for the dismissal of the entire petition filed by Atiku and his party.

He also prayed for the striking out of the reply filed by the petitioner to the reply of the respondents’ application.

Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), representing the APC, in his submission, told the tribunal that he has three applications praying for the striking out of the entire petition or striking out of some paragraphs of the petition.

However, counsel to PDP, Levy Uzoukwu SAN, told the court that it has five pending applications. One of which was challenging preliminary objection to the respondents’ applications praying to strike out the substantive matter.

The tribunal, now headed by Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, of the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal, after hearing the submissions of counsels in the matter, adjourned to tomorrow to hear all the pending applications from both the APC and PDP.