A 3 man panel of the presidential election petition tribunal has ordered INEC to allow the presidential candidate of the PDP,access to all Certified True Copies of the materials used in conducting the 2019 presidential election.
This, according to the court, is pursuant to section 151 subsection 1 and 2 of the electoral act.
The tribunal held that forensic audit and analysis by expert can not amount to inspection, as it does not fall under section 151 of the electoral act, which only allows for inspection of election material for the purpose of instituting , maintaining and defending an election petition
The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday, adduced reasons why he applied for an order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to surrender all the materials used for the February 23 presidential election, for inspection.
He said the request was to establish that the exercise was fraught with manifest irregularities, including multiple thumb-printing of ballot papers, saying he intends to engage forensic experts to analyse the election materials.
Consequently, he prayed the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, for leave to be allowed to obtain some of the sensitive materials that INEC deployed for the presidential election.
