The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, has admonished Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi to accept the apex court’s decision in the interest of the country’s unity.

The organisation urged them to give their maximum support and encouragement to the current effort of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration to raise the bar of governance in the country through the implementation of impactful economic policies.

Okechukwu Isiguzoro, the Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, made the group’s position known in a statement issued on Thursday evening, following the Supreme Court verdict affirming the 2023 presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as the duly-elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Earlier, the Supreme Court quashed petitions filed before it by presidential candidates of the Labour Party (LP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), respectively, Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar.

Obi and Atiku, in separate suits, had approached the apex court to appeal the judgement of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal that had earlier upheld Tinubu’s victory at the polls.

Earlier, Ohanaeze noted that the momentous decision from the highest court in the land officially brings the closure of litigation necessitated by the outcome of the concluded February 25, 2023, presidential election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The pan-Igbo organisation commended the jurists for their diligent examination and fair judgment in the post-election lawsuits.

According to the statement: “The verdict reinforces the credibility and integrity of our democratic institutions and, as well, highlights the importance of upholding the rule of law and the will of the people.

“In light of this outcome, Ohanaeze Ndigbo calls upon the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and Mr Peter Obi of the LP to emulate the historic gesture of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who congratulated and supported the immediate past Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari, after the 2015 election.

“We urge them to reach out to their main political opponent in the 2023 election, President Tinubu, and extend their congratulations on his victory in the Supreme Court.

“This gesture of sportsmanship and magnanimity is crucial in fostering unity, healing divisions, and setting a positive example for their supporters.”

Ohanaeze congratulated President Tinubu on the reaffirmation of his victory and urged him to exhibit magnanimity in victory.