• Accept Tinubu’s victory as will of God – Aisha Buhari
• We’re ready to meet Peter Obi in court – APC
• INEC gives updates on Enugu, Edo supplementary elections
• PDP rejects Tinubu’s victory, says Atiku won
• You didn’t win 2023 presidential election – Tinubu responds to Peter Obi

Across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, these are the five top Nigerian news stories you shouldn’t miss:

Accept Tinubu’s victory as will of God – Aisha Buhari

Aisha Buhari, the president’s wife, has urged Nigerians to accept Bola Tinubu’s win as God’s will.

Aisha met Oluremi Tinubu and Nana Shettima, spouses of the president-elect and vice-president, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Thursday, according to NAN.

She assured that Tinubu would not mislead Nigerians after his electoral victory.

“Regardless of our interests and diversity, we should all accept it as a will of Almighty God, we wouldn’t have done it without his grace,” Aisha said

“It is a victory for all Nigerians. I am optimistic that the president-elect will not betray the trust and confidence that Nigerians reposed in him. It is now time to move on and focus on the path of renewed hope for Nigerian women and youths.

“So, my sister we count on your experience and interest in promoting the cause of women, youths, and girl-child education.”

She encouraged the wife of the president-elect to continue to provide support for women and girl-child empowerment in the country.

“The task is arduous but with your determination I believe is surmountable. I pray that come May 29, your position as first lady will be marked with joy and continued success,” she added

“We look forward to the advancement of Nigerian women and their inclusion in the affairs of our nation’s development.

While commending the wife of the president for her role in the success of the presidential election, Oluremi Tinubu said that Aisha has demonstrated her motherly duty to the country through courage and wisdom.

“We want to thank you sincerely for how you’ve been able to bring us together as a campaign team for the APC, especially the women’s presidential campaign team. You really showed a lot of wisdom, dexterity, and courage in the way you put us together,” she said.

“I remember coming here to ask for your permission and also to solicit support when we were about to begin the campaign.

“As you’ve come here safely, you will live in your home in good health, divine health, and whatever you decide to do; God will be there with you, thank you so much for the love you have shown to us.”

We’re ready to meet Peter Obi in court – APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) says it is ready to meet Mr. Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate, in court over his claim of electoral fraud in the Feb. 25 presidential election.

Mr. Bayo Onanuga, Director of Media and Publicity, APC Presidential Campaign Council (PCC), said this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

The statement was the APC PCC’s reaction to comments made by Obi at a news conference in Abuja.

“We welcome the decision of Mr. Obi to seek redress in court as an aggrieved party if he is convinced of the evidence of electoral frauds he will present before the tribunal as alleged.

“Going to court is part of the electoral process and it is the most decent, statesmanlike, and civilised course of action to take,” Onanuga said.

He said the APC PCC saluted the decision, adding that it was better than calling supporters to the streets and instigating social unrest.

He, however, challenged some specific claims in Obi’s press address, saying that contrary to his statement, it was not true that the election was not free and fair.

Onanuga said the 2023 Presidential and National Assembly election was one of the most transparent and peaceful elections in the history of Nigeria.

He added, “It is because the process was credible that made it possible for Obi’s Labour Party to record the over six million votes it got contrary to pre-election forecasts.”

INEC gives updates on Enugu, Edo supplementary elections

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday said it would conduct supplementary elections in senatorial and federal constituencies where returns were not made after the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections.

Festus Okoye, the INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, stated this in a statement in Abuja.

He said, “The Commission is aware that in some Senatorial Districts and Federal Constituencies, Declarations and Returns were not made.

“The Commission is compiling the list of the affected constituencies. A date for supplementary elections will be fixed after the Governorship and State Assembly elections.”

Okoye also noted that INEC held its regular weekly meeting on Thursday and deliberated on different issues, including the Presidential and National Assembly elections and the pending elections in Enugu East Senatorial District and the Esan Central/Esan West and Igueben Federal Constituencies in Edo State.

He added that the Commission would conduct the re-scheduled elections in Edo and Enugu States on Saturday, March 11, 2023, along with the Governorship and State Assembly elections.

PDP rejects Tinubu’s victory, says Atiku won

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has rejected the declaration of Bola Tinubu as the president-elect.

The opposition party said it has commenced legal action to nullify Tinubu’s victory and ensure that Atiku Abubakar, its candidate is declared the winner.

On Wednesday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Tinubu as the winner of the election that was held on Saturday and also issued him a certificate of return.

Mahmood Yakubu, chairman of the INEC, said Tinubu secured 8,794,726 votes.

Atiku Abubakar of the PDP had the second-highest figure with 6,984,520 votes, while Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) was next with 6,101,533 votes.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Debo Ologunagba, PDP spokesperson, said the party “rejects in its entirety the declaration and return” of Tinubu as the president.

“The PDP demands that INEC immediately withdraws the certificate of return issued to the presidential candidate of the APC and cancel the presidential election declaration in line with its powers under section 65 of the Electoral Act 2022,” the statement reads.

“The party insists that INEC in declaring the APC Presidential Candidate as the winner, acted contrary to the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act 2022, and the INEC Guidelines and Regulations for the conduct of the 2023 Presidential election.

“The PDP holds that its Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar clearly won the February 25, 2023, Presidential election having evidently scored the majority of lawful votes cast by Nigerians at the Polling Units.

“Sadly, the election was marred by deliberate malpractices including the non-use of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC’s refusal/failure to transmit directly the results from Polling Units to its Server/Website in flagrant violation of Section 60 (4)(b) of the Electoral Act 2022.

“This violation of the Electoral Act by INEC as attested to by political parties, voters, Nigerians of all walks of life as well as local and International Observers, paved the way for the alteration, falsification, switching of results and allocation of figures in favour of the APC.

“Consequently, our Party and its Presidential Candidate have commenced an action for legal redress to reclaim our victory in the 2023 Presidential election.”

The PDP asked its supporters to “remain calm, resilient, resolute and steadfast in the defence of democracy and the victory of our Party in the 2023 Presidential elections”.

You didn’t win 2023 presidential election – Tinubu responds to Peter Obi

The president-elect, Bola Tinubu has reacted to the statement made by the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Obi.

Obi, during a press conference on Thursday, argued that he won the just concluded presidential election.

In a statement signed by the Director of Public Affairs and Chief Spokesperson, Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo advised the former governor of Anambra State to stop misleading the gullible, noting that Tinubu won the election and not him.

According to him: ”We make this brief statement in reaction to the Press briefing held earlier today by the defeated candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, wherein (in his now well-acknowledged penchant for spewing falsehood) he made the outlandish claim before the world that he won the 2023 Presidential Election, but he was robbed of the victory.

“Having been officially declared winner of the 2023 Presidential Election by the Independent National Electoral Commission and having received his Certificate of Return (along with his Vice-President Elect), the President-Elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu would have ignored this continuous false claims being peddled by Mr. Peter Obi and his supporters. But we recognise his motive of doing this is to simply delegitimise the mandate freely given to the President-Elect by majority of Nigerians.

“Mr. Peter Obi is always quick to cite some isolated incidents of irregularities outside his strongholds that could not have SUBSTANTIALLY affected the outcome of the results in those areas, whereas he DELIBERATELY fails to comment on tons and tons of evidence circulating everywhere wherein his supporters in his strongholds engaged in thuggery, hooliganism, violence and outright falsification of figures against our Party and our supporters. He pretends to play the victim, whereas he is the greatest culprit in this game of brickbats.

“Mr. Peter Obi knows HE COULD NOT HAVE won having played the most divisive religious politics in our history and the pattern of the votes clearly show that; Mr. Obi KNOWS HE COULD NOT HAVE WON having broken out as a fragment of the main opposition, the PDP and all he could hope for was to harvest a portion of the votes of PDP in a section of the country and the results do NOT tell a lie; Mr. Obi knows HE COULD NOT HAVE WON, when he presented himself as a tribal candidate and was only campaigning in settlements of his tribesmen in other States outside the South East instead of appealing to all and sundry; Mr. Obi knows he could not have won having joined the Labour Party few months ago and bought the ticket of the Party without valid Primaries and thereby polarised his party; Mr. Peter Obi KNOWS HE DID NOT WIN because he did not even fulfil the minimum requirement of our constitution which requires a spread of 25 percent in two-thirds of the States of the Federation. He did not come close. With his divisive rhetorics, he could not have ever come close.

“It is also ludicrous that Mr. Peter Obi is laying claim to victory along with his new-found partner, the PDP, that is also laying claim to victory. I tweeted this morning, thus: ‘’This is the first time in my entire life that I am seeing people who came 2nd and 3rd in an exam both claiming they took first and then agreeing to protest together to the examiner to record that both of them took first, yet they are not seeing the contradiction in their actions.’’ We stand by that comment.

“The President-Elect, ASIWAJU Bola Ahmed Tinubu has extended a hand of fellowship to his defeated opponents, including Mr. Peter Obi to join hands with him in nation-building.

“Mr. Peter Obi should embrace that hand of fellowship and brotherhood by the President-elect as a committed patriot instead of engaging in this crass grandstanding.