Atiku, PDP Asks Presidential Election Tribunal To Televise Court Proceedings

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has asked the presidential election petition tribunal to televise its proceedings.

Atiku and PDP made the request in a motion by his legal team led by Chris Uche, SAN, on Monday during the pre-hearing of the petitions at the tribunal.

They appled for “An order directing the Court’s Registry and the parties on modalities for admission of Media Practitioners and their Equipment into the courtroom.”

The former vice-president, who is challenging the electoral victory of the president-elect, Bola Tinubu, said it was a matter of public interest in which millions of Nigerian citizens and voters are stakeholders, with the constitutional right to be part of the proceedings.

Atiku said his argument is that the case involved citizens and electorates in the 36 sates of the Federation who participated in the just concluded presidential polls while adding that the international community is interested in Nigeria’s electoral process.

In their motion, they contended that, “An integral part of the constitutional duty of the Court to hold proceedings in public is a discretion to allow public access to proceedings either physically or by electronic means. 

“With the huge and tremendous technological advances and developments in Nigeria and beyond, including the current trend by this court towards embracing electronic procedures, virtual hearing and electronic filing, a departure from the rules to allow a regulated televising of the proceedings in this matter is in consonance with the maxim that justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done.

“Televising court proceedings is not alien to this court, and will enhance public confidence”, the petitioners noted.

They also prayed the court to withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to Tinubu by the ruling All Progressives Congress, by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

According to him, the decision to declare Tinubu, winner of the presidential election “invalid by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.”

KanyiDaily recalls that Atiku and PDP are challenging APC’s victory at the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja, stating that Tinubu never won majority of the lawful votes cast in the election.