The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal in Abuja has ruled that the Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, made generic accusations of irregularities in the 2023 election.
Justice Abba Mohammed, who read the judgement on Wednesday, ruled that the LP and Obi failed to specify the anomaly, the places where the irregularities occurred and those affected.
Mohammed also stated that the petitioners failed to prove that their votes were suppressed by failing to specify the number of votes suppressed.
The judge ruled that although Obi and LP claimed to have scored the majority of lawful votes cast, they failed to state the number of lawful votes they scored.
“The petitioners failed to state the number of votes affected and the number of people disenfranchised. They also failed to prove that their votes were suppressed by failing to specify the number of votes suppressed.
“The determination of election is about figures,” the court held.
The court also struck out several paragraphs of the LP’s petition for being generic and vague, stating that the petitioners failed to name the specific polling units where irregularities occurred.
It held: “Generic allegations of irregularities and said they would rely on spreadsheets, inspection reports and forensic analysis filed with the petition during the trial but the documents promised by the petitioners were not attached to the petition.”
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