Sunday Ejike Benjamin
20 September 2007
Abuja — The presidential candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), has taken his fight to get former president Olusegun Obasanjo to defend his election petition to the Supreme Court.
Gen. Buhari said the Court of Appeal which also served as the presidential election petition tribunal was wrong in its decision to strike out Obasanjo's name as a respondent to the petition.
The tribunal headed by Justice James Ogebe, on September 11, struck out Obasanjo's name as a respondent to the petition on the grounds that he (Obasanjo), did not participate in the conduct of the election.
The tribunal also stated that Obasanjo was not a proper party to the petition under section 144 (2) of the electoral Act, 2006.
Gen. Buhari, in a notice of appeal filed on his behalf by his counsel, Chief Mike Ahamba SAN, said that only the former president could defend the several allegations he made against him, saying that Obasanjo has already joined issues with him in his reply to the petition.
"By deciding that Obasanjo did not participate in the conduct of the election, the Court of Appeal had delivered judgment on a substantial part of the petition prior to the hearing of the petition," the notice of appeal stated.
Gen. Buhari said that it was wrong for the Court of Appeal to limit itself to the police when allegations was also made against soldiers and asked the apex court to allow his appeal and set aside the order of the Court of Appeal striking out former president Obasanjo's name.
He further asked the supreme court which will resume sitting on Monday, to restore Obasanjo as the 3rd Respondent to the petition.
The president of the presidential election tribunal, Justice James Ogebe, while upholding Obasanjo's application to get his name struck out had said that Obasanjo's presence was not needed to deal with all the issues raised in the petition.
In the views of all the five members of the tribunal, Obasanjo was not a necessary party.
It could be recalled that Obasanjo had earlier protested his joinder as a respondent to the petition claiming that he did not take part in the conduct of the elections.
The former president filed an objection in which he urged the tribunal to strike out his name and also raised section 308 of the 1999 constitution which he said granted him immunity.
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