Presidency: Anxiety As Supreme Court Rules Today

• Tinubu Will Be Victorious Says Presidency
• Obi Challenges Nigerian Judiciary To Protect Nation’s Value System 
• Labour Party Expresses Optimism Of Snatching Victory 
• Nigeria Won’t Burn Irrespective Of Judgement, Says Reno Omokri As #OccupyNigeria Trends

There is palpable anxiety in the country as Nigerians await the Supreme Court to deliver final judgements today October 26, 2023, in the two surviving petitions challenging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s victory at the February 25, 2023 Presidential Election.
The petitions were filed by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, and his counterpart in the Labour Party, LP, Peter Gregory Obi.
The Supreme Court’s Director of the Press and Information, Dr Awemeri Festus Akande, confirmed the development on Wednesday.
The judgement date was confirmed by all parties involved on Wednesday.
The Matrix reports that at its last sitting on Monday, the apex court reserved judgement filed by Atiku and the PDP against the verdict of the Presidential Election Petition Court which affirmed Tinubu’s victory in the February 25 presidential poll.
The apex court also took arguments from lawyers to parties on the motion filed by Atiku to supply fresh evidence on forged documents.
Counsel to Atiku Abubakar, Mister Chris Uche, urged the court to grant the motion and allow their appeal, grant the prayers sought, and disqualify Tinubu.
Counsel to the Respondents, Abubakar Mahmoud for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Wole Olanipekun for President Tinubu, and Akin Olujinmi for the All Progressives Congress (APC) urged the court to dismiss both the motion and appeal for lacking in merit.
Reacting to the impending judgement, President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has expressed hope that the Supreme Court will affirm his principal’s victory in the February 25 presidential election.
Onanuga posted the following on X: “The Supreme Court will give its verdict tomorrow (Today) in the appeals filed by the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi; the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
“They are challenging the victory of the All-Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, President Bola Tinubu in the 25 February election.
“We in the APC are hopeful for victory. We are hopeful that the apex court will affirm the sanctity of the 8.9m votes of Nigerians that gave President Tinubu victory last February” he tweeted.
Similarly, the Labour Party has expressed confidence that tomorrow’s Supreme Court judgement would be in its favour.
The party disclosed this through its national legal officer, Kehinde Edun.
Edun noted that its presidential candidate in the February 25, 2023 election, Mr Peter Obi would be declared winner.
In his words: “We are expecting victory because that is what justice demands; that is what Nigerians want. We will not lose hope. We have presented our case before the court.
“We are confident of victory for the Labour Party and Nigerians. We know that there will be jubilation everywhere in Nigeria.” In a veiled message on his part, Obi has challenged Nigerian Judiciary to protect the nation’s value system and embrace change in the dispensation of justice.
Reacting to the recent judicial victory that Nigeria recorded in the contentious $11 billion damages bill involving the controversial P&ID deal in a post on his X handle (formerly known as Twitter) on Wednesday, the former Anambra State governor said a truly just and fair New Nigeria is possible if our judiciary embraces the spirit and message of change. “As we have gladly received justice in a foreign land, may we learn to give justice to our countrymen so that our nation can enjoy peace, progress, and unity. A truly just and fair New Nigeria is possible if our judiciary embraces the spirit and message of change” the tweet partly reads.
In a related development, Reno Omokri, a former Special Assistant to Ex President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, has expressed optimism that irrespective of where the pendulum swings today with the ruling, Nigeria won’t burn.
He also enjoined the opposition to eschew a defeatist mentality following the trending of the hashtag #OccupyNigeria whereas the apex court is yet to rule.
“Trending #OccupyNigeria when the Supreme Court has not even given its judgment is defeatist. They are already anticipating defeat. Look, Nigeria will not burn, no matter how the court rules tomorrow. There will be no military coup. The process has worked well so far. Our judiciary has not been compromised. And our democracy is on track.
There were serious shortcomings with the #NigerianElections2023. Waziri Atiku Abubakar was by far the best candidate. However, if we are to be honest, we, the opposition also made some mistakes. If a united opposition could not defeat the ruling APC in 2019, how can a divided opposition, which has gone four separate ways, defeat them? You had Waziri Atiku in the PDP, Wike and G-5 in the APC, Peter Obi in Labour, and Kwankwaso in the NNPP. And you had the APC united. It was not Tinubu that defeated us. Our inability to unite led to our defeat” he tweeted.