The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may file a petition before the Presidential Election Tribunal today, to challenge the outcome of the February 23 presidential election. Also, the opposition party has vowed to petition the United Nations and other global organisations on the role of the military in the elections. This was part of the decisions reached at the expanded caucus of the party held in Abuja yesterday.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC), winner of the election with 15,191,847 votes, while the PDP candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, came second with 11,262,978 votes. Last Saturday, Atiku inaugurated a legal team headed by Dr. Livy Uzoukwu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), to pursue his case in court. PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, at an expanded caucus meeting of the party, said the decision to go to court has been settled, adding that the lawyers assembled would file the petition today. “The decision to go to court has been finalised and agreed and the process is on.
The lawyers have been assembled. We may be in court today or tomorrow. No one can stop us. “No matter the propaganda of APC, we will seek justice till the last drop of our blood. We believe justice will be done and God almighty will give justice,” Secondus added. He accused the APC of celebrating criminality, but expressed regret that leaders of the country were not condemning what happened in the election. Secondus further warned that if the leaders fail to condemn the alleged malpractices in the election, there might not be elections in 2023, “because if you have the military, you don’t need the people. All you need to do is to make announcement.” The National Chairman also condemned the alleged intimidation of INEC and its ad hoc staff, as well as the intimidation of a section of people in Lagos not to vote in this Saturday’s elections.
