Tribunal Dismisses Obi’s Claim Over 25% in FCT, Rules in Favor of Tinubu

Court Rejects Labour Party’s Petition, Rules FCT Votes Not Special

In a recent ruling, the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) dismissed the Labour Party’s petition, challenging President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the 2023 presidential election. The petition, filed by presidential candidate Peter Obi, alleged that Tinubu’s failure to secure 25% of votes in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) rendered his election null and void.

However, the court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, the tribunal’s chairman, on September 6, 2023, determined that the FCT does not hold a special status and should be treated on par with other Nigerian states. It emphasized that the Nigerian constitution guarantees equal rights for all citizens, including voting rights, and votes cast in the FCT do not carry additional weight compared to those in other states.

This ruling marks the end of Peter Obi’s efforts to overturn his election defeat to President Tinubu, as other arguments presented in his petition were also decided in favor of the President.

Earlier in the proceedings, the tribunal dismissed Obi’s request to disqualify Tinubu based on an alleged drug indictment in the United States. The court found that Obi and his party failed to substantiate their claims that the APC candidate had been convicted of money laundering in the U.S., as no evidence of criminal arrest or conviction was presented against him.

Furthermore, the court rejected the testimonies of 10 out of 13 witnesses presented by the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, ruling that only the three witnesses submitted with the original petition were admissible, while the remaining witnesses were filed after the commencement of the hearing.