In a dramatic twist, a witness of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has testified that both the party’s candidate and President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are not qualified to be declared as president for not scoring 25 percent in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The witness, Mohammed Babaji Madaki, who is also the chairman of the PDP in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), stated that Atiku and Tinubu did not get up to 25 per cent of total votes cast in the FCT.
During cross-examination by counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mohammed Aliyu, at the resumed hearing of the petitions on Monday, June 5, the witness affirmed that receiving 25 per cent of total votes cast in the FCT was a prerequisite for a candidate to be declared President.
When asked if his statement was merely his opinion, the witness clarified that it was based on constitutional provisions.
INEC had declared Tinubu winner of the February 25 presidential election after polling 8,794,726 votes to come first. Abubakar finished second with 6,984,520, while Obi polled 6,101,533 to come third.
The PDP and LP candidates rejected the result and approached the tribunal with separate petitions to challenge Tinubu’s victory.
They alleged that Tinubu was not qualified to contest the election and that he failed to secure the majority of lawful votes cast at the poll.
