Presidential poll: Mixed reactions trail Supreme Court’s judgement

.Apex Court dismisses Atiku, PDP’s appeal against President .To give reasons for its decision at a later date

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The Supreme Court on Wednesday laid to rest the controversy surrounding the declaration of President Muhammadu Buhari as the winner of February 23 presidential election as it dismissed the appeal filed by candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the party.

The Apex Court decision affirmed the position of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal on September 11 and the declaration of Buhari by the electoral commission as winner of the said election.

Delivering the terse judgment, Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad said:  “We have examined all the briefs and exhibits for over two weeks and we agreed that there is no merit in this appeal. The appeal is hereby dismissed. Reasons for this is to be given in date to be announced.”

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A seven man panel of Supreme Court justices on Wednesday heard the appeal. Atiku and PDP had filed seven separate appeals, six of which were interlocutory appeals and one the main appeal.

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) whose victory at the election and Court of Appeal was challenged also filed one cross appeal.

Earlier, during the hearing, the Apex Court had overruled the arguments and submissions of lead counsel for Atiku and PDP that the interlocutory appeals should be taken along with the main appeal. The Apex Court held that the decision in the main appeal should abide on the other seven appeals.

The presiding justice of the seven man panel and Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad, when the matter was called,  informed the counsel  that the panel has reached a decision to the effect that judgment in the main appeal would cover the other appeals including the cross appeal filed by the APC.

Counsel to INEC, Yunus Usman (SAN), President Buhari, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) and that of the APC, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), agreed with the decision of the apex court, while counsel to the PDP, Dr. Levy Uzuokwu (SAN), however disagreed praying the court to hear their interlocutory appeal challenging the striking out of certain paragraphs in their petition by the tribunal.

The justices ruled that for time constraints, the Supreme Court cannot make an order for retrial at the lower court assuming they conceded to hear all the interlocutory appeals and write a ruling in their favour because the time allowed has elapsed.

Then Uzoukwu (SAN) was asked to adopt his brief of arguments on the main appeal. Uzoukwu submitted that the Court of Appeal was in error when it held that same person bears the name Mohamed Buhari and Muhammadu Buhari.

He said that the Court of Appeal speculated on the issue with absolutely no pleading or evidence.

Uzoukwu, SAN, also told the Apex Court that Buhari had no certificate and nobody including his witnesses ever sighted the certificate including the school testimonial he claimed to have obtained.

On the issue of Sever, he said that INEC refused to appreciate what Sever is by denying that it has no Sever. He said that where INEC stored voters’ cards and PVC is called data.

He also stated that Section 52(2) of the Electoral Act which the Court of Appeal relied on in its decision has been replaced with the provision that allowed electronic voting.

But, INEC’s lawyer, Ustaz Usman (SAN), insisted that alleged Sever was created by the petitioner witnesses. He also said that the petitioners called only five witnesses contrary to the provision that they should call polling agents as witness in all the 119, 000 polling units in the country.

Wole Olanipekun (SAN) said that the law was clear on the qualifications requirement for president and that Uzoukwu was trying to make mountain out of nothing.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has welcomed the Wednesday ruling of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, dismissing the case brought before it by former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Reacting to the verdict through a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, in Abuja on Wednesday, President Buhari again thanked Nigerians for the mandate they gave to him to run the affairs of the country for another four years.

The statement read in part: “The Government – and people of Nigeria – have been aware that the result of the February 23 presidential election has been settled now for some eight months.

‘‘President Buhari was re-elected by an absolute majority of 55.6 per cent of the national vote, with Nigerians casting nearly four million more votes for President Buhari than his nearest challenger – representing a margin close to 15 per cent of the total vote.

“The former Vice President and his political party exercised their rights, under the Nigerian Constitution and electoral laws, to petition the courts and dispute this result.

‘‘They did so first at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal which ruled in September 2019 against them. Now – following his appeal to the Supreme Court and its ruling to dismiss their case for “lacking merit” – this matter is now closed.

“The President and Government of Nigeria do wish to extend our gratitude to former vice-president and his party for undertaking their campaign through protestations to the courts.

‘‘In this regard they have conducted themselves in line with the laws of the country they sought to lead.

“Now, following this final legal bid before the highest court, it is time the country is afforded the right to move on – in the interest of all Nigerians – regardless of how they voted.

“The elected President and his Government now must be enabled to focus solely on addressing the issues that concern the country.

‘‘From building economic empowerment and opportunities for the nearly 200 million Nigerians, 60 percent of whom are youths bubbling with energy, to defeating the twin ills of terrorism and corruption, there is much work to do.

“So too must the opposition be afforded the right to focus directly on their vital role of holding the administration to account for its decisions.

‘‘The governance of a democracy only functions as it should when those checks on the executive are in place – and utilised.

“The opposition, as much as the government, must now move on – and without the need for further distractions.’’

Welcoming the apex court dismissal of the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Alhaaji Atiku Abubakar, against President Muhammadu Buhari’s 2019 election victory, the All Progressives Congress (APC) congratulated Nigerians, President Buhari, Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, party leaders, members and supporters of the party  on the  verdict.

By dismissing the appeal in its entirety, the party said the apex court was apt in dismissing it for lacking merit while it hailed the Judiciary for standing firm in the face of the PDP and Atiku’s subterfuge and for siding with the Nigerian electorate to re-elect the President Buhari-led APC administration.

The APC in a statement by its national publicity secretary, Lanre Issa- Onilu, said: “With the ruling of the Supreme Court, which has finally affirmed President Buhari’s election victory, we enjoin the PDP and Atiku to jettison their destructive and disruptive agenda against Nigeria, which they have made up their minds to pursue for the next four years.

“The PDP and Atiku should not confuse opposition politics for their unpatriotic agenda. Democratic politics cannot be practiced in the state of anarchy, confusion which the PDP and Atiku wish to achieve. Such diabolic plan will definitely fail”.

The party assured Nigerians that the President Buhari-led APC government will continue to focus on delivering its Next Level plans for the country.

In his reaction, the President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, said the judgement is a ringing affirmation of the solid mandate the Nigerian people freely gave President Buhari. 

Lawan said: “Today’s unanimous verdict of the Apex Court has removed whatever doubt that might have been raised on the integrity of the last presidential election.

“Now that the litigation is over, we should all rally as one people behind the President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, in his commitment to building the great nation of our dream.

“The petitioners should gracefully accept the final verdict of our court of law while the winners should demonstrate magnanimity by extending the hand of fellowship to the opposition with a view to carrying all Nigerians along in the arduous task of nation-building”.

The Senate President urged President Buhari and his government to continue to focus on good governance so as to deliver on the President’s agenda of improving the lives of Nigerians and putting the nation on the path of sustainable development.

Also, Speaker of the House of the Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has described the victory of President Muhammadu Buhari at the Supreme Court as a victory for democracy.

Gbajabiamila, who said though the victory of the President at the February presidential poll was never in doubt, however, expressed his appreciation of the final victory, whereby Nigerian democracy was tested by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, the Speaker said: “I want to use this opportunity to congratulate the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces on his final electoral victory that was challenged by PDP and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

“It is my conviction that this final victory, which has never been in doubt since the conclusion of the election would allow the President to concentrate on his determination to champion good governance for the generality of Nigerians, the reason why he was voted for in the first place.

“I also congratulate our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the victory. This goes to show that the party has come of age in party politics and in putting forward the best hands that can and will take Nigeria to greater heights through the fulfillment of our Manifestos and support for government policies.

“I want to urge, Mr. Atiku Abubakar, who has put to test our justice delivery system by contesting the election result from the lowest to the highest court, and the PDP to accept the judgment in good faith and in the spirit of sportsmanship and help the government in building a strong, prosperous and united Nigeria.

”I rejoice with President Buhari and our party, APC over this victory”.

Describing the Supreme Court judgement as part of the country’s democratic challenges, Atiku Abubakar said the final judgement in the affairs of men rest with God.

According to a statement credited to him, Atiku said: “It is said that the Supreme Court is not final because it is infallible, but that it is infallible because it is final. While I believe that only God is infallible everywhere, and only Nigerians are infallible in our democracy, I must accept that the judicial route I chose to take, as a democrat, has come to a conclusion.

“Whether justice was done, is left to the Nigerian people to decide. As a democrat, I fought a good fight for the Nigerian people. I will keep on fighting for Nigeria and for democracy, and also for justice.

“The judgement is part of democratic challenges we must face as a nation”.

However, the PDP presidential candidate took a swipe at the nation’s judiciary, describing it as been compromised.

He said: “The Nigerian judiciary, just like every estate of our realm, has been sabotaged and undermined by an overreaching and dictatorial cabal, who have undone almost all the democratic progress the Peoples Democratic Party and its administrations nurtured for sixteen years, up until 2015.

“Can Nigeria continue like this? Recently, former United States Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, averred that Nigeria had rolled back the democratic gains she made in 2015. When democracy is rolled back, the economy, the society and the judiciary will not be far behind. Today, the nail has been put on the coffin and the gains we collectively made since 1999 are evaporating, and a requiem is at hand.

“In a democracy, you need a strong judiciary, a free press and an impartial electoral umpire. Nigeria has none of those three elements as at today.

“One man, one woman, one youth, one vote, should be the only way to make gains in a democracy. And when that is thwarted, the clock starts to tick.

“Two and a half millennia ago, Sophocles said “If we are to keep our democracy, there must be one commandment: “Thou shalt not ration justice.” Nigeria will do well to observe this warning”.

Atiku expressed resilience in pursuing what is just, stressing that “to those who think they have broken my spirit, I am sorry to disappoint you. I am too focused on Nigeria to think about myself. I gave up that luxury twenty years ago. The question is not if I am broken. The question is if Nigeria is whole?

“This is not a time for too many words. It will suffice for me to remind Nigeria of this – we are an independent nation and we are the architects of our fate. If we do not build a free Nigeria, we may end up destroying her, and God forbid that that should be the case”.

He thanked all Nigerians who have stayed the course since the commencement of trial in the petition on the February 23 presidential election.

Atiku’s running mate in the February 23 poll, Peter Obi, challenged the result.

Obi said the concern of all discerning minds from the outcome of the ruling on Wednesday on the Appeal against the election result should be on its effect in our society.

Obi said that the issue really is not about the party or the candidates but about our society and what we are bequeathing to our children.

The Vice presidential  candidate, who was the former Governor of Anambra State, said in a statement from his media office in Abuja that the candidate and the party decided to approach the court after the election because they were sufficiently convinced that what was declared by INEC did not reflect the vote cast by majority of Nigerians.

“The issue here is not about the candidates or the party, it’s about democracy and our society,” he said.

Obi finally commended Nigerians for their commitment to PDP and to democracy and urged them not to relent. He also commended the legal team for all their efforts that would undoubtedly enrich the nation’s jurisprudence.

Expressing rude shock over the verdict, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said what was witnessed at the apex court was not what majority of Nigerians, who participated and observed the Presidential election expected, even members of the APC.

The PDP noted that it indeed made a solid case, with undisputable evidence, showing that Atiku Abubakar won the Presidential election and as such is surprised that the justices of the Supreme Court held otherwise; however, that is the highest court of the land.

The party in a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, said the judgement notwithstanding, the distinction of its  case remains for Nigerians, including generations yet unborn, to appreciate.

“The PDP expresses gratitude to millions of Nigerians across board for voting Atiku Abubakar in the election as well as for their unflinching support for our party during the election and throughout the duration of court proceedings.

“Nevertheless, our party, indeed the nation, awaits the justices of the Supreme Court to release their reasons behind their verdict”, the party said.

The National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, saluted Nigerians of all divides for their commitment and support to the party and to democracy.

Prince Secondus said that the commitment of Nigerians to democracy and its tenets despite inhibiting factors is worthy of emulation and highly commendable.

The national chairman said that the nation’s apex court has ruled but the final judgement comes from God almighty.

“We thank you for your support for PDP, for your commitment to democracy. Nigerians know that you voted PDP, even APC knows that you rejected them on February 23, 2019, international community knows you voted for PDP, if Supreme Court of seven justices says otherwise, leave it to God the ultimate Judge.”

He also commended the press, the fourth estate of the realm for their commitment to democracy and good governance in our land but urged them not to relent in their roles of holding politicians accountable to the people.

Prince Secondus however told the people to remain resolute in their prayers to God since the country is in such an untidy state that only God can bail her out.

On his part, Atiku lead lawyer, Dr. Livy Uzoukwu (SAN) said that except something is done about electoral jurisprudence the country’s democracy is doomed.