Nigeria tribunal rejects challenges to president

ABUJA (Reuters) - A Nigerian tribunal on Tuesday rejectedopposition demands for a re-run of last year's presidentialelection, averting a political crisis in Africa's most populousnation.

Umaru Yar'Adua won a landslide victory, but local andinternational observers said vote-rigging was so rampant thatthe results were "not credible".

A special five-judge tribunal rejected legal challengesfiled by the two main opposition candidates, former army rulerMuhammadu Buhari and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar.

"Umaru Yar'Adua and Goodluck Jonathan remain the presidentand vice-president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria," saidJudge John Fabiyi at the conclusion of a ruling that took morethan three hours to deliver.

Major oil exporter Nigeria, a chaotic country of 140million people, emerged just nine years ago from decades ofcoups and army rule. Many politicians had feared thatinstability would return if Yar'Adua's election was annulled.

The two challengers immediately said they would appeal tothe Supreme Court. This could take several more months.

"For us, we have come to the semi-final," Buhari toldreporters immediately after the ruling.

The odds for the Supreme Court decision appear heavilystacked in favour of Yar'Adua after the tribunal rejected everysingle one of the challengers' points.

It said Buhari had failed to prove that violations of theelectoral law were substantial enough to invalidate Yar'Adua'svictory. It ruled that Abubakar had not been excluded from thepoll, as he had alleged, but rather had participated actively.

DISAPPOINTING

"It is a very disappointing judgment," said InnocentChukwuma, head of the home-grown Transition Monitoring Group.

"We had expected the tribunal to go beyond meretechnicalities and address the yearnings of Nigerians for fairand credible elections," he said.

But economists said the ruling had strengthened Nigeria'spolitical stability and this would reassure investors.

"We expect the decision to be positive for the performanceof Nigerian markets," said Razia Khan, regional head ofresearch for Africa at Standard Chartered Bank in London.

Uncertainty over whether Yar'Adua would finish hisfour-year term had slowed policy-making and investmentdecisions, and economists expressed hope the pace of reformwould now pick up.

"The key is whether the greater political certaintytranslates into more effective government. There is not a lotthe government can point to after nine months in power," saidGraham Stock, Africa strategist at JP Morgan in London.

In a statement after the ruling, Yar'Adua pledged to run "apurposeful and result-oriented administration that will yieldtangible and visible benefits for all Nigerians".

He also promised electoral reform to ensure that similardisputes do not arise in future.

Tribunals at state level have cancelled the elections ofseven out of 36 state governors who were also elected lastApril, as well as the elections of the Senate president anddozens of legislators. The rulings cited voting irregularities.