2023: Presidential tribunal announces date to deliver Judgement, allows live broadcast

Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) said it will deliver judgment on Wednesday 6 September in the petitions filed by Peter Obi, Atiku Abubakar, and the Allied Peoples Movement against the election of President Bola Tinubu.

A press statement by the chief registrar of the court, Umar Bangari confirmed the date. It comes four months after the court began hearing the petitions.

Bangari said the judgment in the three petitions will be relayed live on TV, “to promote transparency and openness”.

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He also said access to the court premises will be strictly by accreditation.

“Only accredited individuals including counsel and representatives of political parties will be granted access into the courtroom.

“Interested members of the public are advised to watch proceedings from their TV sets”, Bangari stated.

The Labour Party (LP), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), petitioned the tribunal seeking to nullify the election of President Bola Tinubu as the winner of the February 2023 presidential election.

All the plaintiffs want President Tinubu to be disqualified for sundry reasons, while the Labour Party and the PDP argued that the election was conducted in compliance with the Electoral Act.

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Lawyers urged Nigerians to trash the news circulating that judgment will be delivered on Wednesday 6 September.

Justice Tsammani, chairman of the 5-man first reserved judgment on 14 July in the case brought by APM.

On 1 August, he also reserved judgment in the two petitions filed by Labour Party and Peter Obi, as well Abubakar and the PDP.

This was after the Court adopted the written addresses on preliminary objections and final written addresses of the Petitioners and Respondents.

In their written addresses, the respondents, representing the Independent National Electoral Commission, the All Progressives Congress, and President Bola Tinubu, urged the Court to adopt their processes and dismiss the petitions.

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Lawyers to the petitioners urged the Court to rely on and adopt all their addresses and allow the petitions by granting all the reliefs sought as the petitions are meritorious.

Justice Haruna Tsammani, after hearing all parties, reserved judgment on the Petition until a later date that will be communicated to the parties.

The PEPC made of five judges, Justice Haruna Tsammani as Chairman, Justice Stephen Adah, Justice Misitura Bolaji-Yusuf, Justice Boloukuoromo Ugo, and Justice Abbah Mohamme, began hearing the petitions on 8 May.