Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and former Vice President of Nigeria, at the weekend inaugurated his legal team to challenge the result of the 23 February presidential election.

The team is headed by Dr Livy Uzoukwu, SAN.

The formation came up following the declaration of President Muhammadu Buhari as winner of 23 Fe. Elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)  Wednesday, 27 February.

However Atiku Abubakar on Thursday, 28 February rejected the result citing several malpractices including the use of the military to perfect voters’ intimidation and suppression in PDP strongholds, connivance of INEC officials, security agents and the ruling party to manufacture bogus figures and outright falsification of the returns from the polling units.

On Thursday night the PDP presidential candidate met with members of the National Peace Committee prompting concerns in some quarters that 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”, Atiku said in a statement by his media aide, 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