Opposition politicians led by Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Major General Muhammad Buhari and Dim Chukwuek-emeka Ojukwu yesterday made good their threat to challenge the result of last month's presidential poll won by the ruling People's Democratic Party [PDP] with a landslide victory.

The trio in separate petitions filed at the Court of Appeal asked the court to annul the April 21 election and order a re-run due to what they called "several anomalies" including unlawful exclusion of candidates, non-compliance with the electoral law, corrupt practices and arbitrary alloc-ation of votes by the Independ-ent National Electora-l Commission (INEC) to the 25 presidential candidates than ran in the poll.

Vice President Abubakar in a 41-page petition put together by a team of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN), led by foremost constitutional lawyer Prof. Ben Nwabueze, and including Prof. A.B Kasunmu, Alhaji Abdulahi Ibrahim, Prof. Itse Sagay, Rickey Tarfa, Chief Adeniyi Akintola, Chief Emeka Ngige, Adeniji Oyeyipo, Chief Titus Ashaolu, Kemi Pinheiro, and Mike Aondoakaa and a host of other experienced lawyers asked the tribunal to recommend the prosecution of INEC chairman, Professor Maurice Iwu and his State Resident Electoral Commissio-ners and to bar them from conducting any future elections in the country.

Vice President Atiku contends in the petition that Gov. Umar Yar'Adua was not validly elected, as announced by INEC, and that his purported election is therefore void.

One of the grounds on which he based his application is that April 21 election did not comply with the electoral law.

On this score, he put forward several actions taken by INEC which were against the law, including lack of final voters, list, election that did not hold at the same time and day, arbitrary changing of the time of voting, discouragement and disenfranchisement of eligible voters who turned up to vote, using of ballot papers without serial numbers, or counterfoils, thus making it difficult for INEC to trace or audit used and unused ballot papers issued.

He also wants the court to invalidate or annul the election because of the corruption that was visited on it by the PDP and the INEC. He gave a state by state evidence of corrupt practices perpetrated by INEC and its officials including ballot stuffing, multiple voting, ballot box snatching, intimidation, over-voting, inflation and falsification of votes, bribery, under-age voting, under supply of voting materials, threats, beatings, and killings.

Atiku's legal team submitted tonnes of evidence in form of video clips, photographs, international and local observers' reports, as well as media reports of the elections, to back its case.

On unlawful exclusion, the Vice President accused INEC of excluding his name, even after making him undergo screening and verification exercise, by going ahead to publish the names of other candidates, and by declaring at various for a that Atiku was disqualified.

He stated that even when a lawful order was made by a competent court, INEC insisted that the only court it would obey on the matter was the Supreme Court. And when the Supreme Court eventually gave the order, it did not publish his name as a candidate, while the Inspector General of Police promptly issued an order which was enforced by law enforcement agencies prohibiting campaign and public meetings until after the date of the Presidential Election.

Consequently, Atiku is seeking the following reliefs:

It may be determined that Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar' Adua who was returned by the 4th - 6th Respondents as the President-­elect based on the Presidential Election held on 21st April 2007 was not duly elected (or returned) and his election be nullified.

It may be determined that the said Presidential election is invalid for non-compliance with the provisions of Electoral Act 2006, which non-compliance had substantially affected the result of the election, and that the election be nullified.

It may be determined that the said election be invalidated or annulled by reason of widespread corrupt practices, and that the election be nullified.

It may be determined that a fresh election be conducted into the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in accordance with Section 147 of the Electoral Act, 2006 at which the 1st and 2nd Petitioners shall be accorded full and unimpeded right to contest as validly nominated candidates.

It may be determined that the 5th, 7th - 42nd Respond-ents as

officials of INEC, who directly and negligently misconducted the April 21, 2007 Presidential Election in contravention of the provision of the Electoral Act, 2006 be recommended for criminal prosecution by the Attorney General pursuant to Section 157 of the Electoral Act, 2006.

It may be recommended that the 5th, 7th - 42nd Respondents who supervised and/or mis-conducted the April 21, 2007 Presidential Election be prohibited from participating in the conduct of the fresh election which may be ordered in consequence of this Petition.

Also former Military Head of State, General Muhammadu Buhari the Presidential candidate of the ANP contes-ting the election in 11 States of the Federation including Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Cross Rivers, Gombe, Jigawa, Ebonyi, Imo, Anambra, Osun, Benue and Katsina respectively.

Both Buhari and his party who filed their petitions through their counsel Chief Mike Ahamba [SAN], are praying the court.

to disqualify the President-elect on the ground that he was not qualify to contest the election having been indicted by a Commission of inquiry set up by the Abia State Government.

They are further asking the Tribunal to invalidate the election on the grounds of non-compliance to the provisions of the Electoral Act 2006 and corrupt practices.

While Ojukwu specifically demanded for an order sacking the chairman of the Independent

National Electoral Commission (INEC) Maurice Iwu and for a conduct of fresh election , Atiku argued that the presidential polls and result should be nullified in the interest of justice .

In the four grounds of the petition filed by his counsel, James Ezike AND N.J. Kalu, Ojukwu claimed that the April 21 election in which Yar'adua and Good Luck were declared was not conducted in compliance with the 1999 constitution and the electoral Act 2006.

It is therefore his contention that the poll did not met the minimal requirement for he electoral democracy and the Act since among other thing it was not conducted in secret.

The APGA's presidential candidate also said that the rudimentary requirements of fairness and equal treatment provided by the constitution and the Electoral Act were not extended to him and to potential voters in Anambra , Imo state , Abia , Enugu and Ebony states of the Federation .

Ojukwu argued that the manner and form of conduct of the said April 21 poll was a usurpation of the franchise and sovereignty of the people.

He therefore prayed the tribunal to void the election (having fell shot of the provisions of the law) in the interest of justice.