Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party candidate, stated on Saturday that he has assembled a group of 50 witnesses who will provide testimony and present evidence to support his claim that the 2023 presidential election was rigged against him.

During the ongoing proceedings of his petition challenging the victory of the ruling All Progressives Congress candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Mr. Obi revealed that he would present his case with the support of 50 witnesses. He expressed the need for a seven-week period to effectively present his case, citing some challenges encountered at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Mr. Obi's legal team, led by Prof. Awa Kalu, SAN, communicated this request to the court.

"My lords, we are still facing some challenges at INEC as a result of the court's order on March 8, which directed them to allow us to conduct a forensic examination of the BVAS. However, they have not granted us access to do so," Prof. Kalu explained.

He further informed the court that they were also awaiting certain documents that they had requested from INEC.

Prof. Kalu stated that the parties involved had agreed to allocate 30 minutes for the presentation of evidence-in-chief by the star witnesses, excluding any time required for the demonstration of electronic evidence.

Regarding the cross-examination of witnesses, Obi's lawyer mentioned that they had agreed to allocate 20 minutes to each party, with an additional five minutes for re-examination.

On the other hand, INEC, represented by Mr. Abubakar Mahmood, SAN, stated that they had not reached any agreement with either Obi or the Labour Party regarding the allocated time for the witnesses. 

"I am not aware of any such issues. I previously assured Dr. Livy Uzoukwu, SAN, the lead counsel for the petitioners, that I would be available to assist him in any way possible if he faced any difficulties. However, I have not received any such complaint from him."

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the first respondent in the case, stated that it would need three days to present its two witnesses.

The President-elect, Tinubu, represented by his lawyer, Mr. Roland Otaru, SAN, mentioned that he would require nine days to call a total of 21 witnesses (excluding expert witnesses) to defend his victory in the election.

The APC stated that it would require a nine-day period to defend Tinubu's election, noting that Obi and the Labour Party had only presented statements from three witnesses.

Furthermore, all respondents insisted on being given a 48-hour notice before any expert witness could testify in the case.

In their petition with the reference number CA/PEPC/03/2023, Obi and the Labour Party argued that at the time Tinubu's running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima, became the Vice Presidential candidate, he was still the nominated candidate of the APC for the Borno Central Senatorial election.

They also contested Tinubu's eligibility to run in the presidential election, alleging that he had previously been indicted and fined $460,000.00 by the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, in Case No: 93C 4483, for an offense involving dishonesty and drug trafficking.

Based on the grounds of corrupt practices and non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, the petitioners argued that INEC had violated its own regulations and guidelines, rendering the election invalid.

As an alternative, the petitioners are requesting an order to invalidate the election and compel INEC to organize a fresh election in which Tinubu, Shettima, and the APC (listed as the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th respondents) will be prohibited from participating.