The Justice Haruna Tsammani-led five-member panel of the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) has dismissed the petition by the Action Peoples Party (APP).
The petition is challenging the declaration of Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the February 25 presidential election.
Since the court started proceedings on Monday, two of these petitions have been dismissed; the first was filed by the Action Alliance (AA), which is led by Adekunle Rufai Omoaje.
Wednesday’s proceedings got underway with APP’s attorney, Obed Agu, informing the court that his client had filed a move on notice dated March 9, 2023, asking for the petition to be withdrawn.
According to Agu, the motion was submitted in accordance with Section 29(1)(2)(3)(4) of the petition’s timetable for elections. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Tinubu, and the APC were named as respondents to the petition.
Obed added that his motion was praying the court to grant the petitioner leave to withdraw its petition numbered, CA/PEPC/02/2023 as well as an order striking out the petition upon its withdrawal.
Lawyers to the respondents – Wole Olanipekun (SAN) for Tinubu, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) for the APC and Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) for INEC – did not object to the petitioner’s motion to withdraw.
Ruling on the application, Justice Tsammani said: “Having considered the application and response of the respondents, we are satisfied that there was no collision on the part of the respondents, the petition numbered, CA/PEPC/02/2023 is hereby dismissed, having been withdrawn.”