The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar’s claims of President Bola Tinubu’s dual citizenship and drug conviction have been dismissed by the Presidential Election Petitions Court.
In a judgment on the objections of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Tinubu’s grounds that the issues bordering on his non-qualification to contest the February 25 presidential election, Justice Moses Ugo held that the grounds were new issues.
He upheld the objections of the APC and Tinubu that the Atiku and PDP could not smuggle in new matters that were not stated in their petition on the grounds of non-qualification.
Atiku said in his response to Tinubu’s objections that he was constitutionally barred from running for president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria because he had forfeited $460,000 in a compromise agreement for a drug-related crime (proceeds of crime) in the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division of the United States District Court.
In addition, Tinubu was accused by Atiku of failing to state in his form EC9 his dual citizenship with Nigeria and the Republic of Guinea, which he voluntarily acquired.
Ada Peter
