The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been accused of fighting a proxy war on behalf of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
OsunDaily News gathered that this was the position of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and it’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.
Counsel for the PDP and Atiku, Chris Uche, SAN, said this when he countered the application moved by INEC’s counsel, Kemi Pinhero SAN during Friday’s proceedings at the Presidential Election Petition Court.
Uche’s reaction follows a motion filed by INEC through its counsel praying the Court to strike out some of the allegations made against Tinubu by Atiku in his petition.
The commission had pleaded with the court to strike out 32 allegations made against Tinubu by Atiku in the petition challenging his victory.
It said the allegation which formed 32 paragraphs in Atiku’s petition should be discountenanced by the court for lack of jurisdiction among others.
But Uche filed a counter affidavit in opposition to INEC’s request and asked the court to dismiss the electoral body’s application, insisting that INEC has no business defending Tinubu and was supposed to be neutral.
Atiku’s lead counsel insisted that INEC ought to be neutral but somersaulted by turning itself into a “busybody and meddlesome interloper” in taking up the defence of Tinubu against the provisions of the law.
He said, “INEC is fighting a proxyd war on behalf of Tinubu which a neutral body should not do,” adding that the court should dismiss INEC’s motion for being a gross abuse of court process, lacking in merit and grossly incompetent.
