The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has said that it is considering consolidating the three remaining petitions challenging the outcome of the last presidential election.
The Justice Haruna Tsammani-led five-member panel disclosed this at the resumption of the pre-hearing session in the petition by Atiku and the PDP on Saturday
The three petitions are those filed by the Labour Party (LP) and its presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Gregory Obi, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and it presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
Justice Tsammani asked lawyers in the case to address the court on whether the remaining petitions should be consolidated as provided in Paragraph 50 of the First Schedule to the Electoral Amendment Act 2022.
The Act reads: “Where two or more petitions are presented in relation to the same election or return, all the petitions shall be consolidated, considered and be dealt with as one petition unless the tribunal or court shall otherwise direct in order to do justice or an objection against one or more of the petitions has been upheld by the tribunal or court.”
The lawyers for the parties, who could not provide adequate responses to the proposal, said they needed some time to consult and get back to court on the issue.
The court, thereafter, adjourned further pre-hearing session in the petition by Atiku and the PDP till Monday.
In the meantime, the Labour Party and its presidential candidate has disclosed their intention to present 50 witnesses before the court in prosecuting their petition before the Presidential Election Petition Court.
Their lawyer, Awa Kalu (SAN) announced this at the pre-hearing session in the petition on Saturday.
Kalu said his clients will require seven weeks to present the witnesses before the court.
