2019 Election: Court Rules in Favour of Buhari …Dismisses Atiku’s Entire Petition

Malik Yahya/

The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has dismissed the entire petition by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking to disqualify President Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate for the 2019 General Election.

The PEPC also declared that there was no evidence that INEC transmitted the results of the 2019 presidential election electronically to any server as the opposition party claimed.

The court ruled that Buhari possesses the West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) to contest the 2019 presidential election.

It said Buhari was not only qualified but eminently qualified to contest the election, adding that the petitioners (Atiku Abubakar and PDP), could not run away from the fact that Buhari obtained WASCE which qualified him for the election.

The court said apart from being qualified, the president also obtained other certificates to validate claims that he is eminently qualified for the presidential poll.

The Chairman of the tribunal, Garba Mohammed, therefore struck out the claims by the PDP and Atiku that Buhari did not possess the needed qualification for the election and that he presented false information to INEC.

Delivering judgement on the matter, the chairman of the tribunal Justice Mohammed Garba said that the petitioners – PDP and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar failed to prove the existence of an INEC server or that the electoral commission transmitted results electronically.

The court held that there was no law in place in Nigeria that allows electronic transmission of results or the transmission of result using card reader going by the electoral act.

“I have carefully examined and examined Exhibit 28 (INEC Manual for Election) tendered by the petitioners, I did not see where there is provision for electronic transmission of the result of an election,” Justice Garba said.

The Court also decided to strike out allegations against security agencies, rejected the application based on non-inclusion of VP Osinbajo; struck out petitioner’s reply for being in breach of rules over criminal complaints; rejected the testimony of Osita Chidoka, the Principal Witness for the petitioner, and dismissed the petition challenging qualification of the petitioner’s counsel.

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