Today, at the Court of Appeal Headquarters in Abuja, the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) is set to deliver judgments on three petitions aimed at removing President Bola Tinubu from office. Various security forces, including the Nigerian Army, the Nigeria Police Force, and the Nigeria Civil Defence and Security Corps, have been deployed to secure all entrances to the court. The Department of State Services (DSS) is also on-site, carefully scrutinizing the identities of individuals entering the premises.
The court has made it clear that only accredited individuals will be allowed inside, instructing its own staff to remain at home. However, the court intends to permit a live broadcast of the judgment on all three petitions.
Back on August 1, a five-member panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani approved these cases for judgment after all parties presented their final arguments. The petitions, identified as CA/PEPC/03/2023, CA/PEPC/05/2023, and CA/PEPC/04/2023, were filed by Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), respectively.
On March 1, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared President Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the presidential election held on February 25. President Tinubu secured a total of 8,794,726 votes, defeating the two main contenders: Alhaji Atiku of the PDP, who came in second with 6,984,520 votes, and Mr. Obi of the LP, who came in third with 6,101,533 votes.
In response to the election results, both Alhaji Atiku and Mr. Obi filed petitions with the court to challenge its validity.