The Labour Party’s vice-presidential candidate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has expressed reservations about his party’s chances of winning its election petition in court.
The party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has already commenced legal action to challenge the result of the February 25 election that produced Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as president-elect.
Obi, a former Anambra State governor, finished third behind Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), but has rejected the result and accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of rigging the election. He announced at a press conference on Thursday, March 2, 2023 that he’ll prove the election was rigged and reclaim his mandate, but his running mate isn’t so certain of victory.
In an interview with CNN later on Thursday, Datti said he’s distrustful of how the Nigerian judiciary currently operates. The former lawmaker cited the example of the current Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, who secured a controversial Supreme Court victory that allowed him to contest in the senatorial election he won last week.
He said, “I don’t trust anything our authorities are saying. I’d have loved to be singing a different song at this point. I’m a patriotic lover of my country and would do anything to improve my country but I have no confidence in the legal system.”
However, the candidate noted that his distrust isn’t a good reason not to contest the result of the election in court. In a stance that sounded contradictory, he said the Labour Party has such a wealth of evidence that it would require ‘more than magic’ for the court not to award victory to his team.
When quizzed on whether the party would ask the court for a fresh election or a recognition of Obi as the winner of the February 25 election, Datti said the legal team is yet to make a decision but he personally prefers a declaration of victory.
Atiku and the PDP are also contesting the result in a separate lawsuit, but Tinubu is expected to have been sworn in, on May 29, before the Supreme Court can make a final ruling.
