INEC Hires 9 SANs To Defend Election Process, Outcome

Nine Senior Advocates of Nigeria have been appointed by the Independent National Electoral Commission to defend the results of the February 25 presidential election.

City Lawyer reported that the team is to be led by former Nigerian Bar Association President, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN). Other members of the team are Stephen Adehi (SAN), Oluwakemi Pinheiro (SAN), Miannaya Essien (SAN), and Abdullahi Aliyu (SAN).

It was gathered from a member of the legal team that four SANs who are staff members of INEC’s legal department are also members of the team alongside Garba Hassan, Musa Attah, and Patricia Obi.

INEC budgeted over N3bn to defend the results of the February 25 presidential and national assembly elections and the March 18 governorship and state assembly polls.

So far, over 100 election petitions have been filed by aggrieved candidates and their parties across the country.

The presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar; the Labour Party, Peter Obi; the Action Alliance, Solomon Okangbuan; Allied Peoples Movement, Chichi Ojei, have also filed petitions for the nullification of the presidential election results.