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After 12-Hour Marathon Judgment, Tribunal Dismisses Obi, Atiku’s Petitions, Affirms Tinubu’s Victory [PHOTOS/VIDEOS]

Published

2 years ago

September 6, 2023

The Presidential Election Petitions Court delivered a 12-hour marathon judgment on Wednesday, throwing out the petitions of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM); the petitions of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its flag bearer, Atiku Abubakar; as well as the petitions of Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

The Tribunal dismissed the petitions of the three parties challenging the victory of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the February 25, 2023 poll.

The five-man panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani did not only dismiss the consolidated petitions of the PDP, the APM and the LP, the panel also clearly affirmed the victory of Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos State, in the presidential poll.

Justice Tsammani said, “This petition accordingly lacks merit. I affirm the return of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the duly elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The parties are to bear their cost.”

After much anticipation, the Tribunal delivered its judgment at the Court of Appeal in Abuja, a proceeding that was televised live from 9am to minutes past 9pm.

Some of the notable persons present at the proceeding crowded by Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) include Vice-President Kashim Shettima of the APC, Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila; and LP’s Julius Abure, among others.

Scene during the proceeding of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal in Abuja where judgements were delivered on Wednesday, September 6, 2023. (Photo: Taiwo Adeshina/Channels TV)

Significantly, Obi and Atiku whom had observed previous proceedings of the Tribunal, were not in court on Wednesday. Tinubu was also not in court as he is away in India for the G-20 summit.

The Tribunal first delivered its verdict on the petitions of the APM, followed by the LP and the PDP.

Court Strikes Out APM’s Suit
In the case of the APM, the Tribunal dismissed the suit of the party seeking to nullify Tinubu’s election for lacking in merit and being incompetent.

The moment the Presidential Election Petitions Court affirmed Bola Tinubu as Nigeria's duly elected president.#PEPTJudgement #PEPTVerdict #PresidentialTribunal #CTVTweets pic.twitter.com/Xgo0t8f6eW
— Channels Television (@channelstv) September 6, 2023

Justice Tsammani, who read the judgment, held that issues the APM raised in its petition contained pre-election matters that could only be determined by the Federal High Court.

Scene during the proceeding of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal in Abuja where judgements were delivered on Wednesday, September 6, 2023. (Photo: Taiwo Adeshina/Channels TV)

The court further upheld the preliminary objections of the respondents who challenged the competence of the suit.

Justice Tsammani noted that since the petition centred on the qualification of Tinubu to contest the presidential election, the APM ought to have gone to court within 14 days after Tinubu was nominated by the APC.

He held that since the cause of action bordered on a pre-election matter, the APM lacked the locus standi to challenge Tinubu’s nomination.

Furthermore, the court held that the Supreme Court had earlier decided that a political party does not have the right to challenge a nomination that was made by another political party.

The court noted that the main grouse of the APM was on the alleged invalid nomination of Tinubu’s then running mate, Shettima.

He further held that Section 84(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022, stipulates that political parties should not impose qualification criteria on a candidate, except as provided for in the constitution.

It held that where an election has already been conducted and the result declared, the qualification of a candidate could no longer be challenged on the basis of sections 131 and 137 of the Constitution.

‘INEC At Liberty To Prescribe Mode Of Results Transmission’

The Tribunal moved to the petitions of the Labour Party and ruled that the LP’s petition of irregularities in the 2023 presidential election was generic.

The court ruled that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was at liberty to decide the mode of transmission of election results during the presidential election on February 25, 2023.

The Tribunal shut down Senior Advocate Charles Uwensuyi-Edosomwan for interrupting court judgement.#PEPTJudgement #PEPTVerdict #CTVTweets #PresidentialTribunal pic.twitter.com/pjKqzbHsEu
— Channels Television (@channelstv) September 6, 2023

The panel said according to Sections 52 and 65 of the Electoral Act 2022, INEC was at liberty to prescribe the manner in which election results were transmitted during the poll.

The Tribunal consequently dismissed the petition of the LP and Obi, which argued that the victory of Tinubu be annulled on the basis on the “failure” of the commission’s Results Viewing Portal (IReV) to upload election results electronically in real time.

The Tribunal also dismissed Obi and LP’s petitions on 25 per cent votes of Tinubu in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), saying that Abuja is like other states.

The court said the Electoral Act 2022 made no provision for electronic transmission of election results.

The five-man panel, said the only technological device that was mandatory for INEC to use for the election is the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

Still on the issue of non-compliance with the Electoral Act and INEC Regulations and Guidelines, Justice Tsammani said there is nothing in the regulation to show that the BVAS must electronically transmit polling units’ results.

The Tribunal also held that the commission’s Results Viewing Portal (IReV) is not a collation system and the judgment in the case of Oyetola Vs INEC clearly supports this.

“There is no provision for the electronic transmission of election results in the Electoral Act 2022,” says Justice Tsammani. “It is at best optional.”

‘Obi Failed To Prove INEC Refused To Promptly Upload Results Online’

Furthermore, the Tribunal ruled that the Labour Party and Obi failed to establish that INEC deliberately refused to promptly upload polling unit results to its Results Viewing Portal (IReV) in order to manipulate the results in favour of Tinubu of APC.

“The petitioner made the allegation of non-compliance a substantial part of their case. By the provisions of Section 135(2) of the Electoral Act, they are required to show how such non-compliance substantially affected them. If they fail to show same, the petition fails.”

The petitioner also made allegations of suppression of results, overvoting and inflation of votes when they said that from the totality of the evidence, the elections are invalid by reason of corrupt practices.

‘Obi, LP Failed To Prove Tinubu Was Convicted For Money Laundering’
In addition, the Tribunal ruled that the Labour Party Obi failed to prove that Tinubu was convicted for money laundering in the United States.

The panel ruled that no record of criminal arrest or conviction was established against Tinubu by the petitioners – Obi and the LP.

Tinubu had allegedly forfeited $460,000 in the US over three decades ago and the petitioners alleged that he was involved in drug trafficking and money laundering.

However, the Tribunal ruled that no criminal charge was filed against Tinubu in the US and that the APC candidate did not go through a criminal trial in America.

The Tribunal said the petitioners failed to prove that the allegation at the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division where the forfeiture occurred was a criminal case.

Justice Tsammani said the ex-governor of Lagos State was not convicted of any crime or any criminal activity and no sentence of imprisonment or fine was imposed on him.

He said according to Section 137 of the constitution, Tinubu is not disqualified from contesting the presidential poll.

‘Atiku’s dual Citizenship Petition Against Tinubu Struck Out’

Moving on to the PDP and Atiku, the Tribunal struck out the petitioners’ case alleging that Tinubu owns dual citizenship and so should be disqualified from the poll.

The panel also struck out the evidence of some of Atiku’s witnesses on the grounds that that their witness statements on oath were not filed along with his petition.

The court also expunged 37 exhibits tendered by the witnesses from the court’s records.

On the issue of dumping of documents on the court, he held that this would only go to the weight to be attached to such evidence.

On the issue of Tinubu’s conviction and the issue of his dual citizenship, the Tribunal again held like it earlier did that this issues were incompetent and liable to be struck out and same were indeed struck out.

On the inability of the election officers to transmit, of the 27 witnesses called by the petitioner, 10 were polling unit agents who testified as to how the elections were conducted in their different polling unit.

All 10 of the witnesses testified that the voting went well and was peaceful in their different polling units but they all said they could not upload results electronically to the portal of INEC, so they entered the results manually and took same to the ward and or state collation center.

The witnesses were emphatic that voting went well, party agents signed the results but the only difficulty was in uploading the results electronically.

The Tribunal strongly stressed that litigation is fought on pleadings, parties swim or sink on their pleadings.

On the allegations that agents of the respondents disrupted the elections, the petitioners said video recordings will be tendered as proof but this was not done.

Issue two was on the 25 percent in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the court simply adopted its earlier decision on the issue.

Issue three was on the qualification of the Tinubu because of the alleged indictment but the petitioners did not place believable evidence before the court.

LP Rejects Tribunal’s Judgments

In a swift reaction, the Labour Party rejected the judgments of the Tribunal.

In a statement after the verdict of the Tribunal on Wednesday, LP’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, said justice was not served in the petitions of the party against the APC and Tinubu.

He also said the Labour Party will make its next move known upon consultation with its lawyers after receiving the Certified True Copy of the judgments.

The party said the judgment of the court “did not reflect the law and the desire of the people”.

“Nigerians were witnesses to the electoral robbery that took place on February 25, 2023, which was globally condemned but the Tribunal in its wisdom refused to accept the obvious,” the statement partly read.

“What is at stake is democracy and we will not relent until the people will prevail.

“We salute the doggedness of our team of lawyers who fearlessly exposed the wrath in our system. We can only weep for democracy in Nigeria but we refuse to give up on Nigeria.

“Details of the party’s position will be presented after consultation with our lawyers after the Certified True Copy of the judgment is made available to us.”

SOURCE: CHANNEL TV

Headline

Trump Administration Proposes New Rule Limiting Nigerians, Others

Published

12 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

The Trump administration has unveiled a proposal that would restrict the length of time international students can remain in the United States for their studies.

According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the regulation, which is expected to be published on Thursday, would impose a four-year cap on student visas and other categories of temporary admissions.

According to Fox News, the DHS said the proposal is part of efforts to curb “visa abuse” and strengthen the government’s ability to “properly vet and oversee these individuals.”

It added that some students have “taken advantage of U.S. generosity” and become “forever” students by staying enrolled in colleges to prolong their residence.

“For too long, past Administrations have allowed foreign students and other visa holders to remain in the U.S. virtually indefinitely, posing safety risks, costing untold amount of taxpayer dollars, and disadvantaging U.S. citizens,” a DHS spokesperson stated.

“This new proposed rule would end that abuse once and for all by limiting the amount of time certain visa holders are allowed to remain in the U.S., easing the burden on the federal government to properly oversee foreign students and their history,” the spokesperson continued.

Currently, F visa holders may stay in the U.S. for the “duration of status,” meaning the period they are enrolled full-time. The new proposal would allow stays for the length of a programme but would not permit them to exceed four years, generally less than the time needed for postgraduate studies.

Foreign journalists would also be affected. Under the plan, they would receive an initial admission period of 240 days, with the possibility of a single extension for another 240 days, but not longer than their assignment.

The DHS said regular assessments would provide “proper oversight” and help reduce the number of people residing in the U.S. on temporary visas.

But education experts warned the measure could hurt universities financially. International students typically pay higher tuition and have fewer opportunities for scholarships, which contributes significantly to the financial support of American colleges.

“It will certainly act as an additional deterrent to international students choosing to study in the United States, to the detriment of American economies, innovation, and global competitiveness,” Fanta Aw, executive director and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators, said in a statement to Politico.

Headline

Russia Hits Ukraine With ‘Massive’ Deadly Overnight Strikes

Published

17 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

Russian forces launched a “massive” attack on Kyiv on Thursday, hitting the Ukrainian capital with strikes that killed at least four people and wounded around 30 others, Ukrainian officials said.

The attack came as Moscow and Kyiv traded blame over an impasse in diplomatic efforts towards a peace deal spearheaded by US President Donald Trump.

AFP journalists in Kyiv witnessed powerful explosions that illuminated the night sky and left behind a column of smoke.

Ukraine’s Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said the strikes killed four people and wounded “about 30 people.”

Those killed included a 14-year-old girl, while five children aged seven to 17 were among those who sustained “injuries of varying severity,” Tymur Tkachenko, the head of the city’s military administration, said.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko described the strikes as a “massive attack” that caused damage in several districts of the capital.

Tkachenko said Moscow had fired ballistic and cruise missiles as well as Iranian-designed Shahed drones from different directions to “systematically” target residential buildings.

Red tracer bullets sailed through the night sky in an effort to intercept drones above the city centre, an AFP journalist saw. At least one missile appeared to be shot down.

Around 100 people took refuge in a subway station, with some lying in sleeping bags and others holding their pets.

A five-story building in the Darnytsky district had collapsed, and a shopping mall was hit in the city centre, Klitschko reported.

– Ukrainian attacks on Russia –
Kyiv suffered one of its worst attacks of the over three-year war on July 31, leaving more than 30 people dead including five children.

Ukrainian officials also reported a Russian strike in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region on Thursday.

Russian authorities said they destroyed over 100 Ukrainian drones overnight. A Ukrainian attack sparked a fire at an oil refinery in the Krasnodar region but caused no casualties, according to local officials.

Russian forces have been slowly but steadily gaining ground in Ukraine in recent months, as diplomatic efforts have accelerated.

Trump held a high-profile summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska this month, followed by a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and European allies.

But there has been little progress since then.

Before concluding any peace agreement, Ukraine wants security guarantees from the West to deter any future Russian attacks.

Moscow has cast Kyiv’s demands as unrealistic and has raised particular objection to the notion of stationing Western peacekeeping troops in Ukraine.

Zelensky said on Wednesday that members of his administration would meet with US officials in New York on Friday.

The Ukrainian leader said he saw “very arrogant and negative signals from Moscow regarding the negotiations”, urging extra “pressure” to “force Russia to take real steps”.

AFP

Headline

Two US Pastors Arrested In $50m Human Trafficking, Fraud Case

Published

17 hours ago

August 28, 2025

Editor

Two church leaders in the United States have been arrested in an alleged multi-million-dollar conspiracy after multiple Federal Bureau of Investigation raids across the country on Wednesday, including one in Hillsborough County’s exclusive Avila neighborhood.

In a statement issued via its website on Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice said Michelle Brannon, 56, was arrested at a mansion near Tampa, while David Taylor, 53, was arrested in North Carolina over allegations of multi-million dollar money laundering, forced labour and human trafficking.

According to the DOJ, Taylor and Brannon are the leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church, formerly known as Joshua Media Ministries International.

The Justice Department said Taylor referred to himself as “Apostle” and to Brannon as his Executive Director.

FBI officials said law enforcement arrested Brannon early Wednesday at 706 Guisando De Avila in Hillsborough County, which is owned by the church, according to property records.

Investigators arrested Taylor on Wednesday morning in North Carolina, while SWAT and FBI agents also raided a hotel owned by the church in Houston.

A 10-count indictment alleged that Taylor and Brannon ran call centres in Florida, Texas, Missouri, and Michigan to solicit donations to the church.

The pair convinced their victims to work at the call centres and work for Taylor as personal servants – referred to as “armour bearers” – for long hours without pay, according to the indictment.

Federal investigators said Taylor and Brannon “controlled every aspect of the daily living of their victims,” who slept at the call centre or in a “ministry” house and were not allowed to leave without permission.

The indictment also says the suspects forced the victims to transport women to Taylor and ensure that those women took Plan B emergency contraceptives.

The church received about $50 million in donations through its call centres dating back to 2014, according to the DOJ.

Taylor and Brannon are accused of using much of that money to buy luxury properties, luxury vehicles, and sporting equipment such as boats, jet skis, and ATVs.

Taylor and Brannon face charges of forced labour, conspiracy to commit forced labour, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Each alleged crime carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Michigan returned a 10-count indictment against two defendants for their alleged roles in a forced labour and money laundering conspiracy that victimised individuals in Michigan, Florida, Texas, and Missouri.

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said the two defendants were arrested in North Carolina and Florida in a nationwide takedown of their forced labour organistion.

“Combating human trafficking is a top priority for the Department of Justice.

“We are committed to relentlessly pursuing and ending this scourge and obtaining justice for the victims,” he said.

Also speaking, U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon Jr. for the Eastern District of Michigan, said, “We will use every lawful tool against human traffickers and seek justice for their victims.

“A case like this is only possible through a concerted effort with our federal partners across the country and the non-governmental agencies who provide victim support. We thank them all.”

“The indictment of David Taylor and Michelle Brannon demonstrates the FBI’s steadfast efforts to protect the American people from human exploitation and financial crimes, including forced labour and money laundering.

“The alleged actions are deeply troubling. I want to thank the members of the FBI Detroit Field Office, with strong support from our federal and agency partners in the FBI Tampa Field Office, FBI Jacksonville Field Office, FBI St. Louis Field Office, FBI Charlotte Field Office, FBI Houston Field Office, and the Detroit IRS-CI Field Office, in addition to several local, county and state law enforcement partners, for their role in executing this multi-state operation.

“The FBI in Michigan will continue to investigate those who violate federal law and remain focused on ensuring the protection and safety of our nation,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Reuben Coleman of the FBI Detroit Field Office.

“Money laundering is tax evasion in progress, and in this case, the proceeds funded an alleged human trafficking ring and supported a luxury lifestyle under the guise of a religious ministry.

“IRS-CI stands committed to fighting human trafficking and labor exploitation, and pursuing those who hide their profits gained from the extreme victimization of the vulnerable,” said Special Agent in Charge Karen Wingerd of IRS Criminal Investigation, Detroit Field Office.

According to the DOJ, conspiracy to commit forced labour carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine up to $250,000, while forced labour carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine up to $250,000.

It noted that conspiracy to commit money laundering carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment and a fine up to $500,000 or twice the value of the properties involved in the money laundering transactions.

It was gathered that Brannon appeared in federal court in Tampa on Wednesday afternoon, but an attorney for Brannon wasn’t present.

A judge asked where her attorney was and whether she had representation.

Brannon told the judge that she had two private attorneys, out of St. Louis and Oklahoma, who were already working with them. However, she said she hadn’t heard from either of them.

The judge said the attorneys were not able to be reached through the phone numbers provided to federal prosecutors. It’s not clear if Brannon has legal representation at this point.

The judge continued Brannon’s hearing to Thursday afternoon. He instructed Brannon to find an attorney in the Tampa area in the meantime.