Court gives Obi 19 days to wrap up, Tinubu gets 5 days to respond
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) have been given nearly four weeks – 19 working days, except sitting extends to Saturday – by the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) to present their case against the declaration of Bola Tinubu as President-elect by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The court ordered Tinubu and the INEC to defend his victory within five days.
PEPC Chairman Haruna Tsammani issued the order on Tuesday when he presented the pre-hearing session report in court.
He directed Obi to open his petition for hearing on May 30 and end it on June 23, according to The PUNCH.
Obi’s counsel Awa Kalu, SAN had requested seven weeks to establish the allegations against Tinubu’s victory but the tribunal explained it arrived at the decision because of the limited time within which the petition must be resolved.
The tribunal rejected the objections of Tinubu and his All Progressives Congress (APC) and ordered the consolidation of petitions by all parties to expedite the proceedings.
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No examination of some witnesses
“Petitioners have 3 weeks to present their case as opposed to 7 weeks they asked for beginning from 30th May to 23 June,” the LP tweeted.
It also confirmed the end of pre-trial hearing on Tuesday and commencement of proper trial on May 30, a day after the expected swearing in of Tinubu as President.
The court proceedings are expected to drag on to the end of August.
To ensure a speedy hearing, the tribunal ruled out oral examination of some witnesses and opted for the adoption of their written statements, per The Guardian.
For star (or expert) witnesses, 30 minutes shall be used for evidence in chief, 20 minutes for cross-examination, and five minutes for re-examination, the court ruled.
The court on Monday dismissed the request by Obi and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar for live broadcast of the proceedings.
