Nigeria\’s Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) has declared President Muhammadu Buhari validly elected after dismissing a petition challenging his victory in the 2019 elections. The Opposition People\’s Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar contested the validity of Buhari\’s win, citing electoral malpractices and irregularities.
However, the tribunal dismissed the petition by a unanimous decision. Delivering the verdict, the lead judge ruled that “The petitioners have a duty to prove all the allegations which are criminal in nature beyond reasonable doubt. The PDP says it will appeal the verdict at the Supreme Court.
Former military leader Muhammadu Buhari was re-elected in February\’s presidential elections after first assuming office as a democratically elected president in 2015. Buhari swept 56% of the votes as against Atiku\’s 41%. Since the promulgation of constitutional democracy in Africa\’s most populous country in 1999, the results of every presidential election has been contested, albeit unsuccessfully, a rare exception being Goodluck Jonathan\’s concession of defeat in the 2015 elections.
