President Bola Tinubu has urged the court to reject the application put forth by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar. Atiku sought to submit documents from Chicago State University, aiming to reinforce his challenge to President Tinubu’s election in the February 25 poll.
Having secured a ruling in his favor from a United States court, Atiku gained access to Tinubu’s academic credentials. Subsequently, he sought Supreme Court approval to submit these documents, alleging that President Tinubu submitted a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Responding to the application, Tinubu’s lead counsel, Wole Olanipekun, characterized it as a “crass abuse of court processes.” Tinubu argued that the Supreme Court should dismiss the application, contending that the matter wasn’t brought before the tribunal within the constitutionally prescribed timeframe.
Tinubu emphasized, “For this honourable court to be able to give effect to Section 33 of the Supreme Court Act, which is the bedrock for Order 2 Rule 12(1), the jurisdiction of the lower court must be alive. Unfortunately for the appellants, however, this jurisdiction died as far back as September 17, 2023, upon the expiration of 180 days from the date of filing of the petition by the appellants.”
In a counter affidavit, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele asserted that Atiku and the PDP did not present any document or deposition from Chicago State University during the tribunal proceedings. He argued that the introduction of fresh allegations, including forgery of academic certificates and dual citizenship, through a reply was vehemently objected to by the respondents.
As the legal battle unfolds, the Supreme Court is now tasked with deciding the fate of Atiku’s application and its implications for the allegations against President Tinubu’s qualification for the election.
