The Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has resolved to challenge the verdict of the presidential election petition tribunal which upheld President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February 25 election at the Supreme Court.
A five-member panel of the presidential election court headed by Justice Haruna Tsammani had on Wednesday night dismissed the petitions filed by Atiku and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi, against the outcome of the election.
Tsammani, who read the judgement, held that the petitioners did not successfully prove the allegations of fraud, non-compliance with the electoral act, and indeed all the grounds in their petition challenging Tinubu’s victory in the election.
However, in a chat with journalists shortly after the ruling, Atiku’s lead counsel, Chris Uche (SAN), said the former Vice President has directed his legal team to appeal the tribunal’s judgement.
He said the team had expected the tribunal to deliver a verdict that would encourage the use of technology in the country’s elections.
The counsel said: “The judgment has been delivered but we have not received justice. Luckily, the Constitution has given us the right to appeal. This is a court of first instance. This is a struggle not for our client but for the constitution of the country and democracy.
“We were expecting an outcome that would improve and encourage the use of technology to enhance election management and transparency in the country.
“We believe that when we get to the Supreme Court, they will have the opportunity to review things said here today. We have the instructions of our client to go ahead to appeal. The struggle has not ended.”