$460k forfeiture: Peter Obi failed to prove Tinubu was convicted – Tribunal

Justice Haruna Tsammani, the chairman of the presidential election petition tribunal at the ongoing judgment, stated that the Peoples Democratic Party and Labour Party (LP) failed to prove that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu should have been disqualified from contesting the 2023 election on account of a forfeiture agreement.

It would be recalled that Tinubu, in 1993, surrendered $460,000 to the US government after a Chicago court found that the money was the proceeds of heroin trafficking.

The forfeiture deal was one of the prayers against Tinubu as put forward by Atiku Abubakar of the PDP and Peter Obi of the LP, who polled second and third in the presidential contest, respectively.

While reading the lead judgment, Justice Tsammani said the evidence (Exhibit P5) tendered by the petitioners shows that it was a civil forfeiture case. At the same time, he held that the petitioners failed to adduce credible evidence to show that Tinubu was arraigned, took a plea or was sentenced or fined in any criminal suit in the US.

“The petitioners have failed to establish their allegation that the 2nd respondent is disqualified from contesting the presidential election under Sec 137 (1)(d) of the 1999 constitution because a district court in Illinois fined him $460,000,” he said.

“The order of forfeiture in exhibit P5 on which the petitioners have relied does not qualify as a sentence of fine for an offence involving dishonesty or fraud within the confabulation of Section 137(d) of the 1999 constitution.”