In a landmark decision on Thursday, the Supreme Court of the country brought an end to a 171-day legal battle aimed at nullifying the election victory of President Bola Tinubu.

The election appeals, filed by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party, were rejected, effectively quashing their hopes of overturning Tinubu’s victory.

The appeals, which began on May 8 and concluded on October 26, sought to challenge the legitimacy of Tinubu’s election. Atiku attempted to introduce fresh evidence related to the President’s academic records from Chicago State University, alleging certificate forgery.

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However, in a lead judgment delivered by Justice Inyang Okoro, the Supreme Court refused to consider this evidence, citing the expiration of the constitutionally allowed period for such evidence to be admitted.

The court emphasized that the 180-day lifespan provided for hearing and determining presidential election petitions had passed, and no provision of the law would allow the admission of new evidence at the appeal stage.

It also noted that the issue of forgery was not pleaded in any paragraph of Atiku’s appeal.

Furthermore, Atiku’s claims of non-compliance by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with the Electoral Act were dismissed by the Supreme Court, which found that the failure to electronically transmit results to the INEC Results Viewing (IReV) portal did not substantially affect the election’s outcome.

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The court clarified that the IReV portal’s non-function did not stop the collation of results, but it only deprived the public of viewing results.

The court ruled that Atiku’s witnesses’ testimonies regarding election manipulation were hearsay and that agents could only testify about what they witnessed in their respective polling units.

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President Bola Tinubu, upon receiving the court’s verdict, expressed gratitude and called for the support of all Nigerians, promising to exceed expectations in his remaining years in office. He lauded the judiciary for withstanding political pressure and attempts at intimidation.