Chris Uche, SAN one of the lawyers to PDP Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar has assured that inauguration of the President-elect Bola Tinubu won’t affect the petitions at the election tribunal.
Tinubu, who was declared the winner of the presidential election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will be sworn in on May 29.
His victory is being challenged in court by Atiku Abubakar, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP).
Speaking with journalists on Tuesday in Abuja, Uche, who is the lead counsel to Abubakar, said Tinubu’s swearing-in won’t “in any way tie the hands of the court”.
Uche said he was not worried that Tinubu would be sworn in before the conclusion of the petitions at the tribunal.
“I have been asked about May 29. I want to assure people that swearing in is only a ceremony that does not in any way tie the hands of the court,” he said.
“The taking of oath binds the person who takes the oath and not the court
“The court has given you its timelines for parties to present their case. We are happy that with the development, the petitions will be expeditiously determined.”
According to the electoral act, the tribunal has 180 days to determine the petitions.
The court is expected to round up all its activities on or before September 16, 2023.
