Nigeria's presidential election tribunal on Wednesday rejected an opposition challenge to Bola Tinubu's win in February's disputed vote, following a pattern seen in previous election years in Africa's most populous country.

No legal challenge to the outcome of a presidential election has succeeded in Nigeria, which returned to democracy in 1999 after three decades of almost uninterrupted military rule and has a history of electoral fraud.

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Atiku Abubakar of the People's Democratic Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party, who came second and third respectively, had asked the court to invalidate the election, alleging irregularities.

Judge Haruna Tsammani, reading out a lengthy ruling on behalf of the tribunal's panel of five justices, rejected Obi's petition point-by-point. He was due to move onto Abubakar's petition next, which was also expected to be dismissed.

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European observers had said in June the elections were marred by problems including operational failures and a lack of transparency that reduced public trust in the process.

However, the elections came and went with little sign of any groundswell of popular opposition, and Tinubu has been accepted by the international community as Nigeria's legitimate leader. As the tribunal was giving its ruling, he was in India preparing to take part in the G20 summit there.

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Atiku and Obi can appeal to the country's Supreme Court to strike down the tribunal's ruling. Any appeal must be concluded within 60 days of the date of the tribunal judgment.

Meanwhile,&nbsp;the judgments of the Presidential Election Petitions Court were rejected by the Labour Party (LP). The party stated that&nbsp;the court's&nbsp;judgment “did not reflect the law and the desire of the people”.

“Nigerians were witnesses to the electoral robbery that took place on February 25, 2023, which was globally condemned but the Tribunal in its wisdom refused to accept the obvious. What is at stake is democracy and we will not relent until the people will prevail," the party said, in a statement.

“We salute the doggedness of our team of lawyers who fearlessly exposed the wrath in our system. We can only weep for democracy in Nigeria but we refuse to give up on Nigeria," it added.

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Nigeria's presidential election tribunal on Wednesday rejected an opposition challenge to Bola Tinubu's win in February's disputed vote, following a pattern seen in previous election years in Africa's most populous country.

Nigeria's presidential election tribunal on Wednesday rejected an opposition challenge to Bola Tinubu's win in February's disputed vote, following a pattern seen in previous election years in Africa's most populous country. No legal challenge to the outcome of a presidential election has succeeded in Nigeria, which returned to democracy in 1999 after three decades of almost uninterrupted military rule and has a history of electoral fraud. Also Read | Russia uses car tyres to cover military aircraft to deter Ukrainian drone attacks: Report Atiku Abubakar of the People's Democratic Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party, who came second and third respectively, had asked the court to invalidate the election, alleging irregularities. Judge Haruna Tsammani, reading out a lengthy ruling on behalf of the tribunal's panel of five justices, rejected Obi's petition point-by-point. He was due to move onto Abubakar's petition next, which was also expected to be dismissed. Also Read | 'Why won't he...': Musk questions Zuckerberg regarding cage fight European observers had said in June the elections were marred by problems including operational failures and a lack of transparency that reduced public trust in the process. However, the elections came and went with little sign of any groundswell of popular opposition, and Tinubu has been accepted by the international community as Nigeria's legitimate leader. As the tribunal was giving its ruling, he was in India preparing to take part in the G20 summit there. Watch | Kenya hosts maiden climate summit in Africa × Atiku and Obi can appeal to the country's Supreme Court to strike down the tribunal's ruling. Any appeal must be concluded within 60 days of the date of the tribunal judgment. Meanwhile, the judgments of the Presidential Election Petitions Court were rejected by the Labour Party (LP). The party stated that the court's judgment “did not reflect the law and the desire of the people”. “Nigerians were witnesses to the electoral robbery that took place on February 25, 2023, which was globally condemned but the Tribunal in its wisdom refused to accept the obvious. What is at stake is democracy and we will not relent until the people will prevail," the party said, in a statement. “We salute the doggedness of our team of lawyers who fearlessly exposed the wrath in our system. We can only weep for democracy in Nigeria but we refuse to give up on Nigeria," it added. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

Nigerian election tribunal rejects challenge to Tinubu's presidential poll victory

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu wrote a letter to the country's Senate, on Friday, seeking support from its members for military intervention in neighbouring Niger, following a military coup against President Mohamed Bazoum.

Tinubu requested for “military buildup and deployment of personnel for military intervention to enforce compliance of the military junta in Niger should they remain recalcitrant”, as per The Cable reports.

West African military chiefs have acquiesced on&nbsp;a plan for a possible intervention in Niger as a deadline for the country's junta to restore civilian rule approaches, an official from regional bloc the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said Friday.

On Sunday, ECOWAS&nbsp;gave the junta, that toppled the democratically elected government of President Mohamed Bazoum in a military coup, a week to either restore him or face the potential use of force.

ECOWAS military chiefs were meeting in Nigeria's capital Abuja to discuss ways to respond to the crisis.

"All the elements that will go into any eventual intervention have been worked out, including the resources needed, and including the how and when we are going deploy the force," said ECOWAS commissioner Abdel-Fatau Musah.

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"We want diplomacy to work, and we want this message clearly transmitted to them that we are giving them every opportunity to reverse what they have done," he added.

Niger's junta has promised to reply "immediately" to any foreign intervention and has been holding Bazoum and his family in his official residence in the capital Niamey for nine days.

<h2>Military intervention in Niger will be 'declaration of war' against us, say Mali and Burkina Faso</h2>

Neighbouring countries of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, in a joint statement, said that any military intervention in Niger to restore deposed President Mohamed Bazoum would be considered a "declaration of war" against their countries too.&nbsp;

"Any military intervention against Niger would be tantamount to a declaration of war against Burkina Faso and Mali," the two countries warned in a joint statement. It comes after West African leaders threatened to use "force" in order to reinstate Bazoum. The leaders have also spoken of possible sanctions on the putschists.

Mali and Burkina Faso said the "disastrous consequences of a military intervention in Niger... could destabilise the entire region".

The two refused to apply the "illegal, illegitimate and inhumane sanctions against the people and authorities of Niger".

(With inputs from agencies)

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Nigerian President Bola Tinubu wrote a letter to the country's Senate, on Friday, seeking support from its members for military intervention in neighbouring Niger, following a military coup against President Mohamed Bazoum.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu wrote a letter to the country's Senate, on Friday, seeking support from its members for military intervention in neighbouring Niger, following a military coup against President Mohamed Bazoum. Tinubu requested for “military buildup and deployment of personnel for military intervention to enforce compliance of the military junta in Niger should they remain recalcitrant”, as per The Cable reports. West African military chiefs have acquiesced on a plan for a possible intervention in Niger as a deadline for the country's junta to restore civilian rule approaches, an official from regional bloc the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said Friday. On Sunday, ECOWAS gave the junta, that toppled the democratically elected government of President Mohamed Bazoum in a military coup, a week to either restore him or face the potential use of force. ECOWAS military chiefs were meeting in Nigeria's capital Abuja to discuss ways to respond to the crisis. "All the elements that will go into any eventual intervention have been worked out, including the resources needed, and including the how and when we are going deploy the force," said ECOWAS commissioner Abdel-Fatau Musah. Also read: Ethiopia declares state of emergency after clashes in Amhara region "We want diplomacy to work, and we want this message clearly transmitted to them that we are giving them every opportunity to reverse what they have done," he added. Niger's junta has promised to reply "immediately" to any foreign intervention and has been holding Bazoum and his family in his official residence in the capital Niamey for nine days. Military intervention in Niger will be 'declaration of war' against us, say Mali and Burkina Faso Neighbouring countries of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, in a joint statement, said that any military intervention in Niger to restore deposed President Mohamed Bazoum would be considered a "declaration of war" against their countries too. "Any military intervention against Niger would be tantamount to a declaration of war against Burkina Faso and Mali," the two countries warned in a joint statement. It comes after West African leaders threatened to use "force" in order to reinstate Bazoum. The leaders have also spoken of possible sanctions on the putschists. Mali and Burkina Faso said the "disastrous consequences of a military intervention in Niger... could destabilise the entire region". The two refused to apply the "illegal, illegitimate and inhumane sanctions against the people and authorities of Niger". (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Niger coup: Nigerian President Bola Tinubu writes to Senate seeking support for military intervention

The day of Bola Tinubu's inauguration as Nigeria's 16th democratically elected president, Monday, May 29, has been designated a national holiday by the government of Nigeria. After being sworn in on May 29, Tinubu will succeed current President Muhammadu Buhari.

Bola Tinubu to be sworn-in as Nigeria's President, world leaders to attend the ceremony