The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has refused a request by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, for a live stream of proceedings in his petition against the election and declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the last presidential election.
Delivering a unanimous decision, Chairman of the Court, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, stated that the request was novel and unsupported by any current law in the country. Justice Tsammani also claimed that granting such a request would transform the court into a market square or stadium, and would add no value to the petition.
Moreover, Justice Tsammani declared that the request was independent of the grounds of Atiku’s petition, and that it had no merit. He subsequently dismissed the petition.
Atiku had approached the court, seeking an order for a live broadcast of the day-to-day proceedings regarding his petition, citing its monumental importance. The PDP also joined Atiku in the request that the tribunal direct the court’s registry and parties on modalities for admission of media practitioners and their equipment into the courtroom.
