 Buhari The seven-member panel of Justices of the apex court headed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Idris Legbo Kutigi, which gave the directive after giving parties the opportunity to decide on a possible date to file in their briefs, reminded them that the apex court is due to commence vacation by the middle of July, 2008. According to Chief Justice Kutigi, "We don’t want a situation where parties will start raising accusations at one another, that is why it is necessary that counsels should decide how long it will take them to file their appeals before the court for hearing". Earlier, Buhari, through his counsel, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN) called for an agreement on the time for filing of briefs in order to give the appeal a speedy hearing in view of its peculiarity. Ac cording to him, nothing is new from what was presented at the lower court, saying it is a question of presenting them again for the superior court to look at. He urged the court to take section 148 of the Electoral Act into consideration. The section requires accelerated hearing and urged the apex court to use its power to stipulate time for accelerated hearing of the appeal, a request the court turned down and directed counsels on both sides to file their briefs within the time provided by the rule of the court. Similarly, the Supreme Court yesterday, while mentioning Atiku’s appeal against the judgement of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal which upheld the election of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua as the president of the country, ordered counsels in the matter to file their briefs in line with the rule of the court, after which a date will be set aside for hearing of the appeal. Meanwhile, Prof. Alfred Kasummu (SAN), Atiku’s counsel told the court that there will be no need for allowing eight weeks for parties to file briefs of argument as the briefs will only be a modification of what was filed at the lower court. He urged the court to allow the appeal to be ripe for hearing by second or third week of June. But counsels representing Yar’Adua, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN) and that of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN) insisted on the eight week grace allowed by the Supreme Court rules within which to file their briefs. The apex court, at the end of the arguments of parties directed that they file in their briefs according to what is enshrined in the Supreme Court rules before a date will be set aside for the hearing of the appeal. It could be recalled that Atiku and Buhari were at the Supreme Court to challenge the decision of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal which, in its judgement delivered on February 29, 2008 dismissed their petitions seeking the annulment of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s election.
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