Breaking: Tribunal set to deliver 2019 presidential election verdict

The presidential election tribunal has said that it will deliver judgement in the petition filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar on Septemeber 11, 2019.

All the parties in the suit had made their final submissions on August 21, when the tribunal declared that the date for the judgement will be communicated at a later date.

In his submission, INEC lead counsel, Yunus Ustaz Usman (SAN) said the Commission conducted the February 23 election in “total compliance with the Electoral Act and the petitioners can never dislodge that”.

He, therefore, asked the panel “to dismiss the petition which was meant to test the river with both legs”.

Also, lead counsel to Buhari, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) asked the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lacking in evidence, adding that Section 131 of the Nigerian Constitution did not demand certificate to be attached to the documents.

Counsel to the APC, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) said the PDP and Atiku, who alleged electoral irregularities in 119,973 polling units in 8,809 wards in 774 LGs, called only 62 witnesses out of which only five led evidence from the polling units.

However, lead counsel to the PDP and Atiku, Levy Uzoukwu (SAN), asked the tribunal to hold that Section 138(1) of Electoral Act, any candidate who submitted false information would nullify their candidacy.

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