Labour Party rejects Tribunal judgement in petition against Tinubu

The Labour Party (LP) has rejected the judgments of the Presidential Election Petitions Court in the party’s petitions challenging the electoral victory of President Bola Tinubu.

Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was declared winner of the February 25, 2023 poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Labour Party spokesman Obiora Ifoh in a statement said justice was not served in the petitions of the party against the APC and Tinubu.

He also said the Labour Party will make its next move known upon consultation with its lawyers after receiving the Certified True Copy of the judgments.

The party said the judgment of the court “did not reflect the law and the desire of the people”.

“Nigerians were witnesses to the electoral robbery that took place on February 25, 2023, which was globally condemned but the Tribunal in its wisdom refused to accept the obvious,” the statement partly read.

“What is at stake is democracy and we will not relent until the people will prevail.

“We salute the doggedness of our team of lawyers who fearlessly exposed the wrath in our system. We can only weep for democracy in Nigeria but we refuse to give up on Nigeria.

“Details of the party’s position will be presented after consultation with our lawyers after the Certified True Copy of the judgment is made available to us.”

The Tribunal on Wednesday described the petitions of the Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, as “unmeritorious”.

Obi and Labour Party claimed that President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was not duly elected during the February 25, 2023 poll.

On the contention by LP that Tinubu ought not to be declared winner of the election because he scored less than 25 per cent votes in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and was not duly elected by majority of lawful votes cast, the Tribunal held that the argument is “ridiculous”.

The five-man panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani considered the directive of state policy and the preamble of the constitution that provides for the equality of citizens and held that by the provisions of Section 134 (2a) of the constitution, and without any form of equivocation, “scoring 25 percent in the FCT in a presidential election is not mandatory and this issue was also resolved against the petitioner and in favour of the respondent”.

The court subsequently declared LP’s petition clearly unmeritorious.