Some election petitions only meant to placate supporters, says Adewole Adebayo

Adewole Adebayo, presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for the 2023 elections, has warned against the politicisation of election tribunals.

He said presidential candidates who see tribunals as a place to continue political campaigns should be prepared for the “heartbreak” ahead.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party (LP) have rejected the declaration of Bola Tinubu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the presidential election. 

On Wednesday, Atiku Abubakar, PDP presidential candidate, filed a petition to challenge Tinubu’s victory.

A day prior, Peter Obi, standard bearer of the Labour Party (LP), had lodged his own petition seeking to void the declaration of Tinubu as the president-elect.

Commenting on Thursday, the SDP presidential candidate said some petitions are “mere therapeutic placebos” by the applicants to placate their followers.

“As for presidential election petitions, blessed are those willing to learn facts and law with open minds when hearing starts,” Adebayo wrote on Twitter.

“Those who see courts as a continuation of campaigns are setting selves up for heartbreak 💔.Some petitions are mere therapeutic placebos for followers.

“Keep this tweet to compare later: (1)What happened or not in USA 30 years ago is not relevant (2)VP was once Senate Candidate is not relevant (3)If votes not uploaded immediately to server are not valid to elect one, then same votes not valid for anyone else (4)FCT is mere 37th.”

Apart from the presidential election, losers of some governorship polls across the country have also made known their plans to challenge the outcomes.