INEC Chairman Summoned to Testify in Election Dispute
Mahmood Yakubu to Appear Before Presidential Election Petition Court Amidst Allegations of Election Manipulation
A Deep Dive into the Ongoing Legal Battle
In a significant development in the ongoing legal dispute over the 2023 presidential election, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, has been summoned to testify before the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja. The move comes as part of the petition filed by Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), challenging the victory of President Bola Tinubu.
Atiku’s legal team, led by Chris Uche, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), informed the five-member panel of the court chaired by Haruna Tsammani that Yakubu would appear before it. The INEC chairman has been subpoenaed to testify on the conduct of the disputed election and is expected to tender some sensitive electoral documents in aid of the petitioner’s suit.
The PDP candidate has accused INEC and President Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) of manipulating the polls. The case has drawn significant attention, with the PDP’s legal team putting INEC, Tinubu, and APC’s legal teams on notice concerning Yakubu’s scheduled appearance to forestall any impediment that may obstruct the hearing.
The PDP has already called 18 witnesses to testify for the petitioner, with the first star witness being Alex Ter, a lawyer and former Attorney General of Benue State. In his testimony, Ter alleged that the February presidential poll was fraught with widespread irregularities as it was conducted in disregard of the Electoral Act, 2022.
Ter presented three video clips featuring INEC chair Yakubu and INEC’s Commissioner for Voter Education, Festus Okoye, who both pledged that the electoral umpire would electronically transmit the election results. The third video concerned the European Union Election Observer Mission. Despite objections from Tinubu and APC, the court admitted the videos played in court.
The case continues to unfold, with the court adjourning the suit for further hearing. As the nation watches, the testimonies and evidence presented in this case could have far-reaching implications for the credibility of the electoral process and the future of democracy in Nigeria.
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