PEPT Judgment: Peter Obi failed to identify polling units with irregularities – Tribunal

The Presidential Election Petitions Court has held that the Labour Pary (LP) and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, failed to specify how they scored the majority of lawful votes in the February 25 presidential election.

In the lead judgment read by Justice Abba Bello Mohammed, the tribunal held that Labour party made generic allegations of irregularities, suppression of votes and corrupt practices to rob them of their votes, especially in Rivers, Benue, Lagos, Taraba, Imo and Osun states but failed to specify the polling units affected or prove concrete evidence to back their claims.

The court said that although Peter Obi and LP claimed to have scored the majority of lawful votes cast, they failed to state the number of lawful votes they scored.

Justice Mohammed further held that LP also failed to prove the allegations of overvoting against the All Progressives Congress (APC) and their actual reduced votes.

“Pleading must set out material facts and particulars. In the instant petition, there was no effort to prove specific allegations, particulars of complaints. The law is clear that where someone alleges irregularities in a particular polling unit, such person must prove the particular irregularities in that polling unit before that petition can succeed” the Tribunal held

According to the Tribunal, the petitioners did not prove the particular polling units where the election did not take place nor did they specify particulars of polling units where there are alleged complainants of irregularities.

‘’“It was only in one instance that figures were given of alleged suppressed votes and we all know that elections are about figures” the court held