In the 2023 election, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, made a significant statement that challenges the common perception.
He asserted that the Supreme Court’s decision did not validate Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s victory, in contrast to the prevailing belief.
The former federal lawmaker emphasized that the Supreme Court did not endorse Tinubu’s win but rather upheld what he termed as an illegitimate decision by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Datti Baba-Ahmed expressed these views during his appearance as a guest on Arise TV in the evening, following his boss, Peter Obi, who had previously addressed the press regarding the election’s judicial aftermath. He made it clear that they rejected the Supreme Court’s judgment and did not consider it a valid ruling.
Peter Obi had gone to the apex court to challenge the ruling of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, which upheld INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as the winner of the election.
The apex court, in its ruling, stood by the PEPT’s decision, affirming Tinubu as the duly elected president.
“Please quote me on this: the Appeal and Supreme Courts did not affirm Tinubu’s presidency. They merely upheld the illegality of INEC’s declaration,” Datti Baba-Ahmed said on Arise TV.
“We accepted the judgment because it was the last step for HE Peter Obi and I to take; we rejected and did not accept it as a valid judgment.”
