PDP’s Atiku Files Case Against President Tinubu In US Court

Opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP)'s leader Atiku Abubakar filed a case against Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the United States of America.

The lawsuit, challenging the declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission that Tinubu won the presidential poll, has been filed in the District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Abubakar's special assistant on public communications, Phrank Shaibu disclosed on Sunday night that the suit is marked No. 23-5099 (N. D. III.). This is a fresh case filed against the Nigerian President by Atiku which is why he withdrew the existing case before a Circuit Court in Illinois.

Abubakar has challenged Tinubu's victory declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Feb. 25 after the presidential election.

"Atiku Abubakar only withdrew the case before a Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois County, United States of America because he is pursuing the same matter in a higher court and he wanted to avoid abuse of court processes. So, this is just the beginning," Shaibu said, Punch reported.

Shaibu also raised questions about President Tinubu's education qualifications. According to Shaibu, Tinubu's academic records are questionable, starting from primary school to university.

"In the past weeks, Nigerians have been watching the ongoing ministerial screening at the Senate where nominees have been made to reveal their primary, secondary and university history," he added. "Some of the ministerial nominees were even classmates with the senators screening them."

He continued, "However, the man who nominated them has no educational history. He has no primary school, secondary school, or university classmates. This is because he has no classmates. He actually fell from the sky."

Shaibu noted that in the past couple of decades, Presidents have invited their former classmates to Aso Rock Villa including former President Muhammadu Buhari, who hosted his classmates from Katsina Middle School.

He went on to question, who Tinubu invited "to the Presidential Villa? Governors from 1999 set."

Tinubu received 8,794,726 votes while Abubakar got 6,984,520 votes. LP candidate Peter Gregory Obi, on the other hand, secured the third position with 6,101,533 votes. These polling results were shared by INEC, which was rejected by the PDP and LP.

Since President Tinubu's victory was announced on Feb. 25, the opposition called it unfair. The opposition parties PDP and Labour Party (LP) refused to accept the outcome of the results and they hired Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) for a legal battle in March.

After Tinubu came into power, he announced subsidy removal, which has impacted Nigerians negatively as it increased fuel and food prices sharply.

However, President Tinubu noted last week that the fuel subsidy removal has saved $1.32 billion within two months and it will eventually benefit the country in the long run.