Nigeria president vows to resign if high court upholds election challenge News
Nigeria president vows to resign if high court upholds election challenge

[JURIST] Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua [BBC profile] told AFP Sunday that he would resign if the Supreme Court of Nigeria [official website] invalidated his victory in the disputed 2007 presidential election [JURIST report]. In March, Nigerian opposition leader and presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari [campaign website] asked the Supreme Court to review a February decision by the country's election tribunal to uphold [JURIST report] the results of the contested elections. Buhari alleges that the election was marred by rampant fraud [JURIST report], but the Nigerian Presidential Petitions Election Tribunal ruled that there was no evidence of malfeasance and upheld results showing victory for Yar'Adua. From Nigeria, This Day has local coverage.

In April 2007, the Independent Nigerian Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Yar'Adua the winner of the country's presidential elections, prompting challenges from rival candidates Buhari and former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar [JURIST news archive]. The election tribunal ordered the INEC to turn over certified copies of the ballots [JURIST report] and provide information on all officials and staff employed for the elections.