Rita Odafe
Nigerian President-elect, Tinubu, slammed Atiku Abubakar, He reminded Atiku, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last presidential election, that he has always lost in his bid to lead the country since 1993.
Tinubu asked Atiku not to see his loss at the last election as strange, arguing that it would have been a miracle for the PDP and its candidate to win in view of the balkanization of the party before and during the election.
He noted that Atiku was without a stable political platform and has lost majority of his key supporters, in view of his habit of jumping from one political party to another.
Tinubu equally noted that Atiku’s emergence as PDP’s candidate fueled the crisis in the party, resulting in five of its sitting governors resolving to work against him and lose.
The President-elect said these in his response to the petition filed by Atiku and the PDP before the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC), in which they are praying to be declared the winner or for the court to order a rerun.
Tinubu’s response was filed on Wednesday night by his team of lawyers led by Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN).
He faulted the competence of the petition, describing it as not only frivolous, but an abuse of the process of court, the PDP having earlier filed a suit at the Supreme Court, through some of its governors, demanding the cancellation of the election.
He argued that the PDP and Atiku cannot maintain two cases on the same issue in different courts at the same time.
Tinubu also faulted the competence of the petition on the grounds that Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) were excluded despite the fact that the petitioners were contesting the results from the states won by LP and NNPP.
‘The petitioners attacked INEC for not following its Manual and Regulations in the conduct of the election, and also complained of glitches, which is also the thrust of their petition.
“While the originating summons (in the suit before the Supreme Court) was filed on 28th February, 2023, this petition was
