Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has inaugurated the legal team to challenge the victory of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu at the presidential election of February 25, 2023.
Tinubu is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
The legal team made up of 19 Senior Advocates of Nigeria, SAN, is headed by Chief J. K. Gadzama, SAN.
Members of the team are: Chief Chris Uche (SAN); Mr. Paul Usoro (SAN); Tayo Jegede (SAN); Ken Mozia (SAN); Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN); Mahmood Magaji (SAN); Joe Abraham (SAN); Mr Chukwuma Umeh (SAN); Dr. Garba Tetengi (SAN) and Chief Emeka Etiaba (SAN).
Others are Chief Goddy Uche (SAN); Prof. Maxwell Gidado (SAN); the National Legal Adviser of the PDP, A. K. Ajibade (SAN); Mr. O. M. Atoyebi (SAN); Mrs. Nella Rabana (SAN); Paul Ogbole (SAN), Nuremi Jimoh (SAN), and Abdul Ibrahim (SAN).
The PDP presidential candidate, while inaugurating the legal team at his campaign headquarters in Abuja, charged it to establish the claim of illegality in the February 25 presidential election and reclaim the mandate of the Nigerian people.
Atiku told the team that apart from reclaiming the mandate from those who undertook the electoral heist that was not a reflection of the will of Nigerians, the legal team should also use the opportunity of the trial to strengthen constitutional democracy in the country.
Addressing the team headed by Chief J. K. Gadzama, SAN, Atiku said it was imperative that they worked assiduously in reclaiming the mandate not necessarily because of him and the PDP, but to strengthen democracy and the electoral process and for generations unborn.”
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FrontPage reports that Atiku had earlier faulted the presidential election, describing it as fraught with irregularities.
He vowed to challenge the result of the February 25 presidential election announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, Atiku announced his resolve to challenge the result of the presidential election.
His words: “Having consulted with leaders of our party and Nigerians from different walks of life, I have come to the conclusion that the processes and outcome of the Presidential and National Assembly election of last Saturday was grossly flawed in every material particular, and as such must be challenged. This has been attested to by both local and international observers. I want to believe that this was not the legacy that President Muhammadu Buhari had promised. For President Buhari, it is not too late to make amends for the good of our country and the future generations and indeed to assure his legacy.”
He added: “This battle to right the wrongs of Saturday is not about me. It is a continuation of my battles to deepen democracy and for a better life for our people. It is about the future of Nigerian youths.”
Complaining about the result of the presidential election, Atiku said: “However, the dreams and aspirations of Nigerians who braced all the challenges to go and cast their votes on Saturday, 25th of February, 2023, were shattered by the conduct of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which failed to live up to expectations. The weekend election was neither free nor fair. Preliminary assessments indicate that it is the worst conducted elections since the return to democratic rule. The manipulation and fraud that attended this election was unprecedented in the history of our nation. I can still not understand why the electoral umpire was in such a hurry to conclude collation and announcement of the result, given the number of complaints of irregularities of bypassing of the BVAS, failure of uploading to the IREV, and unprecedented cancellations and disenfranchisement of millions of voters in breach of the Electoral Act and the commission’s own guidelines. It was indeed a rape of democracy.”
