Atiku vs Buhari: The Judgement day has come

After extensive legal fireworks by the legal teams of both the petitioners, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 23 poll, and the PDP; and the defendants led by President Muhammadu Buhari, candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal is set to deliver judgment this Wednesday. The tribunal after taking the briefs of the legal counsels to both the plaintiffs and defendants on August 21 had resolved to communicate the Day of Judgment to the parties in the suit.

National Daily learned that the law provides that the judgment on the presidential election suit should not be delayed beyond September 13, 2019, which amounts to the 180 days prescribed by the constitution.  It was, however, alleged that the PDP candidate, Atiku Abubakar, had last week written the President of the Court of Appeal protesting the silence of the tribunal on delivering judgment on the PDP petition after weeks of taking final briefs and submissions from the parties in the suit. Atiku was said to have reminded the Appellate Court of the time that is running out.

Meanwhile, the various stakeholders in the power tussle have been on red alert since the tribunal announced the judgment date on Monday.

However, Nigerians have maintained their pessimism that the judges may not deliver the appropriate judgment or may be allegedly influenced by the incumbent power. Stakeholders in the Nigerian project express the phobia that the judges may shift from the substantive issues and evidence tendered during the proceedings in search of technicalities to favour the party candidate in power in the judgment. The suspicion is deepening the skepticism of Nigerians on the independence of the judiciary and the judges.