Claims it’s abuse of court process
Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, declared winner of the February 25 presidential poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has opposed the request by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate, Atiku Abubakar; and Peter Obi of Labour Party, for live coverage of the proceedings of the election petition tribunal, claiming it is an abuse of court process.
Tinubu who was responding to Atiku’s application through his team of lawyers led by Chief Wole Olanipekun urged the court to dismiss the application.
“The application is an abuse of the processes of this honourable court”, Tinubu argued.
Continuing, Tinubu’s legal team said: “The application also touches on the powers and jurisdiction invested in the President of the Court of Appeal by the Constitution, over which this honourable court as presently constituted cannot entertain.
“The application touches on the administrative functions, which are exclusively reserved for the President of the Court of Appeal.
“The application is aimed at dissipating the precious judicial time of this honourable court.
“The said application does not have any bearing with the petition filed by the petitioners before this honourable court.
“It is in the interest of justice for this honourable court to dismiss the said application filed by the petitioners,” they said.
Tinubu in his written address, criticised the applicants’ reference to the fact that virtual proceedings were allowed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Another angle to this very curious application is the invitation it extends to the court to make an order that it cannot supervise.
“The position of the law remains, and we do submit that the court, like nature, does not make an order in vain, or an order which is incapable of enforcement,” the respondents stated.
“At the very best, this application is academic, very otiose, very unnecessary, very time-wasting, most unusual and most unexpected, particularly, from a set of petitioners, who should be praying for the expeditious trial of their petition.”
