THISDAYonline

The Presidential Election Tribunal, Abuja, yesterday ruled that the petition by the All Nigeria Peoples Party's (ANPP) Presidential candidate, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) over President Olusegun Obasanjo's re-election was properly filed.

In a unanimous ruling on the preliminary objection by Obasanjo's counsel, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), the tribunal refused to strike out the petition over alleged incompetence and lack of jurisdiction as requested by Obasanjo.

Obasanjo had asked the court to strike out the petition over alleged incompetence.

He had also asked for an order striking out some paragraphs in the petition on the ground that parties against whom no allegations were made were joined as parties in the petition.

Obasanjo equally sought for an order deleting out some paragraphs of the petition on the grounds of incompetence and non-compliance with sections 133(2) of the Electoral Act.

However, Justice Umaru Abdullahi, President of the Court of Appeal, who delivered the ruling, said the petition had substantially complied with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2002 so would not be voided.

Also he said that not joining the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), did not render the petition void since it did not participate in conducting the elections.

"PDP is not an electoral officer or body, polling officer or agent. Paragraphs 47 of the first Schedule to the Electoral Act could not be expanded to include PDP," he said; adding that the non joinder of the police and the State Security Service (SSS) alleged in the petition to have stuffed ballot boxes could not render the petition void.

Abdullahi said the reference to the police and SSS in the petition was in relation to their role in which case they could not be joined as parties.

On the preliminary objection filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) asking that the petition be struck out for not exhibiting the attestation clause, Abdullahi said that was surmised to be a complaint against the Court of Appeal (where the tribunal was sitting) registry, which could not be relied upon to deflate the merit of the petition.

"Since there was payment of filing fees, the law had been complied with. You cannot visit the omission of the court's registry on the petitioner. This could not render the petition void."

At the end of the session, Buhari, who spoke with reporters, said he was satisfied with the ruling adding it was an indication that the judiciary was the last hope of the common man.