The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has inaugurated a legal team to challenge the result of last Saturday’s presidential election, his spokesperson said.
The team is headed by Livy Uzoukwu, a senior advocate of Nigeria.
The Independent National Electoral Commission had on Wednesday declared Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the election.
Mr Abubakar rejected the result, accusing the government of using the military to intimidate voters and suppress PDP strongholds. He also alleged the connivance of INEC officials, security agents and the ruling party to manufacture bogus figures and falsify the returns from the polling units.
On Thursday night, the PDP candidate met with members of the National Peace Committee prompting reports he may have been prevailed upon not to proceed with the challenge.
“I have just inaugurated my legal team and charged them with the responsibility of ensuring that our stolen mandate is retrieved,” Mr Abubakar said Saturday, according to his spokesperson, Paul Ibe.
“I am encouraged by the presence of fearless men and women of the Bench. The judiciary which had in the past discharged itself ably is once again being called upon to deliver judgement on this matter that will be untainted by lucre and uncowed by the threat of immoral power,” he added.
Mr Abubakar said sooner “these noble dispensers of justice will give a judgement that will represent a historic denunciation of electoral fraud and mandate bandit.”
 and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has inaugurated a legal team to challenge){kind=link}