Court Adjourns Case Against Tinubu’s Victory As INEC Allegedly Denies Atiku’s Legal Team Access To Electoral Materials

Hearing in the petition of former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, against the election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was abruptly adjourned by the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) in Abuja due to alleged refusal of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC (INEC) to make some critical electoral materials available to him.

The Court shifted further hearing in the petition till June 7 pending the time the electoral body is expected to have responded to the request of Atiku and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to release the documents to them.

At Today’s proceedings, Eyitayo Jegede, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), who conducted proceedings for Atiku had sought to tender forms EC8A from 10 out of 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State to establish the petition against Tinubu.

Although, the schedule of documents to the effect was filed along with the exhibits, the Court, however, noted that tendering such sensitive exhibits in piecemeals would not be of any help especially in the areas of marking and numbering them.

Jegede, who rose to the questions put to him by the Court blamed INEC for deliberate refusal to supply his client with the vital documents.

The Senior lawyer hinted the Court that Atiku had paid as much as N6m for the supply of cerified true copies of the exhibits, lamenting that the electoral body had not been forthcoming and cooperating as required and envisaged.