The Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja abruptly adjourned the hearing in former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s petition against the election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The adjournment was due to the alleged refusal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to provide critical electoral materials to Atiku.
The court postponed further proceedings until June 7, pending INEC’s response to Atiku and the Peoples Democratic Party’s request for the supply of certain documents.
During Tuesday’s proceedings, Atiku’s representative, Eyitayo Jegede, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), sought to tender forms EC8A from 10 out of 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State as evidence against Tinubu. These exhibits are documents used in the February 25 Presidential Election, including those from various local government areas.
However, the court noted that presenting such sensitive exhibits in pieces would not be helpful, especially in terms of marking and numbering them. Jegede blamed INEC for deliberately refusing to provide his client with the vital documents.
Jegede informed the court that Atiku had paid N6 million for certified true copies of the exhibits, but INEC had not been forthcoming or cooperative. As a result, Atiku’s legal team had to subpoena top INEC officials to compel them to bring the required documents to court.
With no objections from the respondents’ counsel, INEC, Tinubu, and the All Progressives Congress (APC), the court granted a 24-hour adjournment for Jegede to approach INEC and ensure the necessary documents are provided.
The matter is now scheduled to resume on June 7.