Mobolaji Michael
THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has appointed five senior advocates of Nigeria (SAN) to defend the 2023 presidential election.
It was gathered that the legal team of the electoral body will be led by Abubakar Balarabe Mahmoud (SAN). INEC’s legal team of SANS includes Stephen Adehi, Pinheiro Oluwakemi, Adekunle, Miannaya Essien and Abdullahi Aliyu. Other legal experts are Garba Hassan Esq, Patricia Obi Esq. and Musa Atta Esq.
Recall that INEC on the 1st of March 2023 declared the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu as the winner of the 25 February 2023 presidential election.
Tinubu had polled a total of 8,794,726 votes and also scored over 25 percent of the votes cast in 30 states, more than the 24 states constitutionally required.
The Chairman of the electoral body. Mahmood Yakubu who announced the final results in Abuja stated that the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Atiku Abubakar came second in the election.
The former vice president, according to INEC, polled a total of 6,984,520 votes in the presidential election. The candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi came third in the election with a total of 6,101,533 votes while Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) came fourth with 1,496,687 votes.
However, Atiku and Obi have challenged the declaration of INEC claiming that they defeated Tinunu in the presidential election. The development saw the presidential candidates file petitions to the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal challenging the declaration of Tinubu. Obi in his petition claimed that Tinubu “was not duly elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast at the time of the election.”
The former governor of Anambra State further stated there was rigging in 11 states, adding that he would demonstrate this in the declaration of results based on the uploaded results.
Eighteen-Eleven Media