Supreme Court affirms Udom, Ikpeazu’s elections

THE Supreme Court yesterday restored the elections of Governor Emmanuel Udom of Akwa Ibom State and his Abia State counterpart, Okezie Ikpeazu, both of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

This was after the apex court held that their appeals against the judgment of the Court of Appeal was meritorious.

This is even as there was tension in Taraba State yesterday as Governor Darius Ishaku and his challenger, Senator Jummai Al-Hassan, now Minister of Women Affairs await their turns at the apex court.

In the case of Abia State, the seven-man panel of Justices, led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Mahmud Mohammed in a unanimous decision set aside the judgments of the Court of Appeal, Owerri division, Imo State, which nullified Ikpeazu’s election.

Justice Suleiman Galadima, who delivered the judgment has however reserved till February 26 to give reasons for his decision.

In the judgment that was set aside yesterday, the five-member panel, headed by Justice Oyebisi Omoleye, annulled the election on the grounds of substantial non-compliance with the electoral law.

The court said the APGA candidate, Dr Alex Otti, scored 164, 444 valid votes to defeat Ikpeazu, who scored 114, 444 votes.

The court declared that Otti was the winner of the April 11 and 25 supplementary elections.

Omoleye said the cancellation of the elections held in three LGAs of Obingwa, Osisioma Ngwa and Isiala Ngwa by the Returning Officers after the results were uploaded to Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was wrong.

“In the Electoral Act, the Returning Officer has the right to only declare results of elections and not to cancel elections.

“This panel discovered that the earlier results uploaded to INEC headquarters corresponded with the correct valid registered voters in the three LGAs, while that awarded to the respondent, shows over-voting and therefore, null and void.”

Omoleye had while reviewing preliminary objections and issues raised by both parties, struck out the preliminary objections by Ikpeazu’s counsel to the effect that the appeal lacked merit.

She also turned down the objection raised by the PDP that the members of the panel were wrongfully constituted and affirmed the arguments of Otti’s counsel.

The appellate court maintained that the lower tribunal erred by not handling all the issues raised.

“It was wrong for the court to insist that because the appellant failed to appear in person, his matter will not be given due attention.

“For not appearing in person, the first appellant did not abandon his case,” she said.

After nullifying the election, the court insisted that there was no need to call for re-run because the results of the April 11 and 25 polls clearly present Otti as the genuine winner of the exercise.

The court therefore, directed INEC to issue Certificate of Return to Otti and swear him in as winner of the election.

Gov. Ikpeazu and PDP approached the Supreme Court, asking it to set aside the verdict of the Court of Appeal.

Dissatisfied with the judgment, the governor filed an appeal at the Supreme Court against the decision.

In a notice of appeal filed at the Supreme Court, Ikpeazu is asking the apex court to set aside the Appeal Court’s judgment on the ground that neither Otti nor his party called credible and cogent evidence in support of their petition challenging his victory.

Earlier, lead counsel to Ikpeazu, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), urged the court to allow the appeal of his client, on the ground that the judgment of the court of Appeal cannot be defended and sustained.

He submitted that the Court of Appeal went out of its way to grant the reliefs that were not sought by the petitioners.

But responding to the appeal, the legal team of Dr. Otti urged the court to dismiss the appeal for want of merit.

Chief Chris Uche (SAN), in responding to the appeal submitted that the case of the petitioners was not built on Card Readers but by the whole election process.

He argued that the decision of the apex court in the case of Zamfara State does not apply in the instant case because it is not the contention of the petitioners that Card Readers should take the place of the voter register.

In addition, Uche submitted that the evidence of PW19 who is an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who tendered the Card Readers report which was not contradicted by the appellants.

It was also his submission that none of the appellants cross-examined the INEC official and did not also call a witness from INEC to contradict her evidence.

He accordingly urged the court to dismiss the appeal and uphold the judgment of the Court of Appeal.

In the case of Akwa Ibom, Justice Chima Nweze set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which annulled the election of the governor and ordered a re-run.

The apex court equally set aside the verdict of the Akwa Ibom State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal which had on October 21, ordered a re-run poll in 18 out of 31 Local Government Areas.

The Court of Appeal had in the lead judgment delivered by Justice Adefunke Okojie, held that the tribunal erred when it voided election results from only 18 Local Government Areas.

The appellate court held that the Justice Sadiq Umar-led tribunal failed to properly evaluate both oral and documentary evidence that were adduced before it by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate, Mr. Umana Okon Umana.

The five-man panel of Justices of the appellate court, in a unanimous judgment, said there was sufficient evidence that the election which produced Governor Emmanuel Udom was not conducted in substantial compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act.

The appellate court held that the Justice Sadiq Umar-led tribunal failed to properly evaluate both oral and documentary evidence that were adduced before it by the APC and its governorship candidate, Mr. Umana.

Recall that the election petition tribunal had annulled Ishaku’s election, declaring that Senator Al-Hassan be issued Certificate of Return. The governor’s appeal set aside the tribunal’s judgment, thereby affirming his election. Not satisfied, Al-Hassan headed for the Supreme Court.

Reacting, the Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu has congratulated Governors Ikpeazu and Mr. Udom on their victories.

In a statement by his aide, Mr. Uche Anichukwu, Senator Ekweremadu who hailed the rulings as “the bastion of the nation’s democracy”, said the apex court’s verdicts on the election petitions “were not only resounding victories for the masses of Abia and Akwa Ibom states, but also for the democracy in general.

“By these verdicts, the Supreme Court has, once more, reaffirmed the supremacy of the ballot box over might and propaganda. I commend the court for upholding the PDP as the overwhelming choice of the people of Abia and Akwa Ibom states and urge my two brothers, Okezie Ikpeazu and Emmanuel Udom, to continue with their legacies of uncommon transformation even as they extend the olive branch to all political interests in the states,” he said.