BREAKING: Supreme Court Rejects Atiku Bid For Fresh Evidence In Tinubu’s Diploma Case

Abuja, Nigeria– The Supreme Court of Nigeria has dismissed the application brought forth by Atiku Abubakar and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to introduce fresh evidence regarding the diploma presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by Bola Tinubu, a prominent political figure.

The diploma in question was issued by Chicago State University (CSU).

The dismissal of the application comes as a result of several key legal arguments. The deposition submitted by Caleb Westberg, the Registrar of CSU, was rejected by the Supreme Court and ruled as inadmissible.

The court asserted that it lacked the jurisdiction to consider the deposition because the 180-day timeline for determining election petitions had expired.

Furthermore, the Supreme Court clarified that, since the period for trial at the Court of Appeal had also elapsed, it could not accept fresh evidence on appeal.

The court emphasized that Atiku’s petition did not initially plead facts of forgery, nor was there any application for amending the petition or extending the time to do so. Even if such an application had been made, it would have been denied.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court emphasized that Atiku’s Brief of Argument did not raise any issues for determination related to certificate forgery.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court concluded that the conditions required for introducing fresh evidence on appeal had not been met.