Court grants Obi, Atiku’s request to Inspect INEC Election Materials

The candidate of Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Obi, on Friday, secured leave of the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja to have access to all the sensitive materials the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, deployed for the conduct of the presidential election held on February 25.

The appellate court, which will sit as the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, equally ordered the electoral body to also grant the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar access to the election materials.

A panel of the appellate court led by Justice Joseph Ikyegh made the orders after it heard two separate ex parte applications the two aggrieved presidential candidates filed alongside their political parties.

Justice Ikwegh gave the go-ahead to Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi on similar grounds.

Counsel to Atiku and PDP had prayed the court to grant the ex-parte application brought pursuant to Section 146 (1) of the Electoral Act 2022, Paragraph 47 (1, 2 and 3) of the first schedule of the Electoral Act of 2022 and under the inherent jurisdiction of the court as referenced by Section 6 (6) A and B of the 1999 Constitution.

The application sought seven prayers predicated on six grounds.

The counsel also informed the court that a schedule of the documents to interrogate the respondent (INEC) was also contained in the application which is an 18-paragraph application supported by a 12-paragraph affidavit.

Counsel to the applicant thereafter adopted all the averments contained in the affidavit and urged the court to grant the application.

Presiding Justice Joseph Ikyegh granted the application of the applicant.

The court also heard the ex-parte application brought before it by the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi urging the court to grant the application for hearing.

Counsel to Peter Obi, Alex Ejeseme, SAN, had brought before the court an ex-parte application pursuant to Section 86 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, Section 146 of the Electoral Act 2022 and paragraphs 47 (1 and 54) of the first schedule of the Electoral Act 2022 under the inherent jurisdiction of the court.