Chrys
President–elect, Bola Tinubu, has said the live broadcast of
the Presidential Election Tribunal is an abuse of the court process.
Reacting to an application filed by the Peoples Democratic
Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, Tinubu urged the tribunal
to discountenance such a move.
He prayed the court to refuse the application on the grounds
that “the court is not a rostrum or a soapbox and not also a stadium or
theatre. It is not an arena for ‘public’ entertainment.”
In a counter-affidavit filed by his counsel, Wole
Olanipekun, the President-elect argued that the application was not within the
tribunal’s jurisdiction.
He stressed that the issue Atiku raised touched on policy
formulation.
“The application also touches on the powers and jurisdiction
invested in the President of the Court of Appeal by the Constitution, over
which this honourable court as presently constituted cannot entertain.
“The application touches on the administrative functions,
which are exclusively reserved for the President of the Court of Appeal. The
application is aimed at dissipating the precious judicial time of this
honourable court.
“The said application does not have any bearing with the
petition filed by the petitioners before this honourable court. It is in the
interest of justice for this honourable court to dismiss the said application
filed by the petitioners,” he said.
