Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has debunked insinuations that he accepted the declaration of presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, as winner of the February 25 election.
Obi who appeared on the Morning Show on Arise TV, yesterday, said his position has not changed. “No change whatsoever in our position on the flawed presidential election.”
A statement by the Obi-Datti campaign organisation quoted Obi in his response to a question, to have been emphatic on his condemnation of the process, under which the election was conducted, including his rejection of the declared results, and purported winner, by INEC.
“This is now being mischievously twisted as an acceptance of the declaration or outcome of the election in some conventional titles and social media forums. It is quite clear that a compromised and incompetent process cannot produce a legitimate or acceptable outcome.
“Mr Obi and the Labour Party remain convinced that the election was carried out with disregard for law and due process, and with overbearing evidence of malfunctions, discrepancies, interference, intimidation, thuggery, alterations and criminality. Our position on the flawed elections of February 25 has not changed, and that is why we are in court.”
Meanwhile, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, has promised making available all the materials requested by the Labour Party’s legal team, after the team of about 60 lawyers visited the INEC headquarters in Abuja.
Speaking after the meeting, the head of the LP Livy Uzoukwu said the team visited INEC because it was yet to receive any electoral materials for inspection on behalf of its clients given that time is running out and that they have barely 10 days out of the 21 days given to file their petition, and were yet to receive any materials yet.
Uzoukwu, however, said: “But the INEC Chairman has given us assurance that all documents we require will be made available and if possible, some of them will be made available to us today.”
When asked of the legal implications if all needed documents are not made available, the legal practitioner responded: “That will be a national calamity.”
with Reports From The Guardian Newspapers