The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has consolidated the three petitions filed by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP), and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
In a pre-hearing report issued and read on Tuesday by Justice Haruna Tsammani, the five-member panel of the court ordered the commencement of hearing in the petition by the parties commencing May 30.
Recall that Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s lawyers opposed the consolidation of the petitions, saying that the interest of justice would not be served.
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“We are opposing the consolidation of the petitions. The interest of justice will not be served by consolidating all of these petitions. The trial of the petitions will be unwieldy, and the substance of the case will be lost,” said Uwensuyi-Edosomwan, of the SANs representing Tinubu.
The court directed that the petitioners conduct their case within three weeks, during which it should call its witnesses, beginning on May 30 when they begin to call witnesses and close on June 23.
The PEPC stated that the trial in the petition will end on August 5 when lawyers to parties are to adopt their final written addresses, following which a date will be set for judgment.