The Supreme Court has deferred its decision on the appeal brought forward by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), challenging the Presidential Election Petition Court’s ruling that upheld President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the presidential election.
Additionally, the court has also reserved judgment on the appeal from the Labour Party (LP) and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM). This announcement was made by Justice Inyang Okoro, who leads a seven-member panel of the court. The decision to reserve judgment came on Monday, following the adoption of briefs of argument and final submissions by the parties’ legal representatives.
During these proceedings, the Supreme Court also considered arguments from the legal representatives of Atiku Abubakar concerning a motion to introduce new evidence regarding forged documents. Chris Uche, representing Atiku, implored the court to grant the motion, uphold their appeal, fulfill their requests, and disqualify Tinubu.
On the opposing side, Counsel to the Respondents, including Abubakar Mahmoud for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Wole Olanipekun for President Tinubu, and Akin Olujinmi for the All Progressives Congress (APC), collectively urged the court to dismiss both the motion and the appeal, citing a lack of merit.
Subsequently, the court reconvened to address the APM’s appeal. The APM was advised to withdraw its appeal as it lacked specific prayers for determination. Counsel for the APM, Machukwu Umeh, followed this advice and withdrew the appeal.
The respondents did not raise objections to the withdrawal, leading the apex court to ultimately dismiss the APM’s appeal.