Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has submitted fresh evidence to the Supreme Court of Nigeria challenging the qualifications of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the February 25, 2023 presidential election.
Atiku, a former Vice President, asserts that the Diploma Certificate from Chicago State University (CSU) used by Tinubu to qualify for participation in the election is allegedly fake and forged, according to the fresh evidence.
In a motion on notice filed by his legal team, led by Chris Uche SAN, Atiku has requested the Supreme Court to admit this new evidence of certificate forgery and perjury. The motion is based on Order 2 Rule 12 of 1985 to ensure justice is served in his appeal.
The respondents in the motion include the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the 1st to 3rd respectively.
The motion relies on various grounds, primarily focusing on academic records, evidence from the Registrar of Chicago State University before a United States of America Court, and the deposition of the same witness concerning the Diploma Certificate presented by President Tinubu to INEC for election eligibility.
The motion asserts that Tinubu was not qualified to contest the election, as required by Section 137 (1) (j) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).
It highlights the efforts made by Atiku’s legal team to obtain academic records from Chicago State University and the subsequent legal proceedings in the United States, which revealed that the certificate presented by Tinubu did not originate from the university.
The motion emphasizes the importance of the deposition obtained, which was not available during the trial at the lower court and is deemed essential in resolving the appeal.
Furthermore, it underscores that presenting a forged certificate to INEC for a presidential election is a grave constitutional matter deserving the court’s consideration.
The motion has been supported by an affidavit deposed to by Uyi Giwa-Osagie, a legal practitioner, and includes details about the election, the Court of Appeal’s judgment, and Atiku’s grounds of appeal.
As of now, no specific hearing date has been scheduled for the motion.
