The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to admit the Chicago State University (CSU) deposition obtained by Atiku Abubakar from a United States court as part of a fresh evidence to prove that President Bola Tinubu violated multiple electoral laws leading to the 2023 general elections.
In the lead judgment currently being delivered by Justice John Okoro, the court held that facts and evidence not rendered at the presidential election tribunal have no place in appeal.
“Facts and matters that were not rendered in the tribunal have no place in the appeal,” the court ruled, adding that “A petitioner shall not be allowed to introduce new evidences in an appeal.”
The court added that Mr Abubakar did not include forgery in his case at the tribunal and that the apex court will not be taking fresh evidence that were not tendered within the 180 days of tribunal.
The tribunal had in September affirmed Mr Tinubu’s victory, throwing out petition by the opposition PDP and Labour Party.
Earlier in August, before the tribunal’s verdict, Mr Abubakar had approached the U.S. court to compel CSU to release Mr Tinubu’s academic record which has been a subject of controversy and shrouded in secrecy for decades.
Decades of controversy over Mr Tinubu’s CSU certificate assumed a new turn last month as the U.S.-based institution in a deposition revealed Mr Tinubu presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
CSU’s deposition had sparked reactions amongst Nigerians, with many calling for President Tinubu’s ouster in line with Nigeria’s Constitution.
Section 137 (1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution (amended in 2010) states that no one would be legitimately elected president of Nigeria if the person “has presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission.”
By this ruling, the apex court has refused to invoke its powers to accept the fresh evidence that could prove damning to Mr Tinubu’s continued stay in office.
