Presidential Tribunal Dismisses CPC Application

The Presidential Election Tribunal yesterday dismissed an application filed by the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) asking the panel to enter judgment in its favour.

The petitioner had alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) failed to grant it access to the biometrics materials as ordered by the court.

Delivering the ruling, Justice Mohammed Garba said that the petitioner interpreted the order of the court wrongly.

He explained that judgment would not be entered in the petitioner’s favour without sufficiently hearing evidence on the matter.

Garba held that the order of granting of access to the election sensitive materials did not cover an attempt by the petitioner to take them away from the commission.

“The order that we made is just to allow the petitioner see, evaluate the materials in the premises of the commission; it was not a fiat for the petitioner to take them away. Having listened to the arguments of all parties on this application, we become convinced that the petitioner is praying for an over indulgence; justice is blind, so this application is dismissed for lack of merit,” he said.

The CPC which is challenging the victory of President Goodluck Jonathan at the last April poll listed INEC, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as defendants.

The panel adjourned till Sept. 7, to allow for reports on the pre-hearing session from counsel to the parties.