Declare me winner of presidential election – Atiku tells Tribunal

Abubakar Atiku, the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential candidate in the last election, has petitioned the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal to uphold INEC’s declaration that he (Atiku) won 21 states in the February 25 presidential election.

On Friday, in his final address in support of his petition with the PDP, Atiku asked for INEC to reverse its decision to name Ahmed Bola Tinubu the election’s victor.

Atiku, through his main attorney Chris Uche SAN, said that INEC’s claim that he won in 25 states has not been challenged, repudiated, discredited, or alleged to be mistake during the proceedings of the tribunal thus far.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said that Atiku’s party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), carried 21 of the 36 states that made up the Federation in the last presidential election.

Adamawa, Akwa Ibom Bauchi, Bayelsa, Borno, Delta, Ekiti, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Osun, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara are the 21 states INEC has declared as having been won by Atiku and the PDP.

The former vice president argued that the tribunal should maintain the electoral commission’s declaration that he won those states based on the commission’s own averments.

“Very importantly, the 1st Respondent (INEC) who conducted the election made an open admission in paragraph 18 of its Reply to the Petition, where it unequivocally stated thus,” read part of the final written address.

“The 1st Respondent further avers that in compliance with extant laws and regulations, it diligently discharged its duties when it collated the 1st Petitioner’s (Atiku) scores at the election, which aggregate to 6,984,520, winning only 21 states, to wit: Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Borno, Delta, Ekiti, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Osun, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.

Atiku was declared the winner in 21 of the 50 states, a fact acknowledged by INEC, the first respondent. The first Respondent (INEC) never once contradicted or rejected this crucial averment during the whole trial.

We respectfully request that your Lordship recognize this as a sufficient admission to dismiss the case. It’s also an acknowledgment with adverse consequences for future interest.

Therefore, Atiku urged the Tribunal to uphold INEC’s assertion and declare him the victor of the Presidential Election held on February 25.