Peter Obi, the presidential candidate for the Labour Party, has announced his intention to pursue justice by taking his case to the Supreme Court in response to the verdict of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.
This decision came after he expressed his disagreement with the tribunal’s “reasoning and conclusions” in its judgment delivered on a Wednesday.
Obi made this declaration during a press conference held in Onitsha, Anambra state, where he asserted that he and his legal team had already initiated the process to file an appeal challenging the tribunal’s decision.
Peter Obi vows to challenge election tribunal verdict
He stated, “Yesterday, on 6th September 2023, the Presidential Election Petition Court finally delivered its long-awaited judgments on the Petitions challenging the outcome of the presidential election held on 25th February 2023.
We acknowledge the Court’s contributions to due process and the seeming attempt to strengthen our democracy.”
While respecting the court’s rulings, Obi emphasized that he disagreed with its reasoning and conclusions and asserted his intention, along with the Labour Party, to challenge the judgment through the appeals process, as permitted by the Constitution of Nigeria.
Obi underlined the significance of the Supreme Court in the pursuit of justice and urged Nigerians to maintain focus, steadfastness, and peaceful conduct, abiding by the rule of law.
He emphasized that the legal team had already been instructed to file an appeal against the tribunal’s decision and expressed his commitment to seeking justice, not just for himself but also for his supporters whose mandate he believes was unfairly disrupted by INEC.
He also emphasized the importance of strong national institutions and the people’s confidence in them, suggesting that electoral litigations would be unnecessary if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) fulfilled its responsibilities transparently and fairly.
However, when such institutions fail, as he alleges was the case with INEC, recourse to the judiciary becomes necessary.