The Court of Appeal in Abuja has overturned the controversial dismissal of Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, by the State Election Petitions Tribunal.
The tribunal’s judgment on October 2, which nullified Governor Sule’s election, has been reversed, marking a significant legal development.
The Appellate Court, led by Justice Uchechukwu Onyemenam, declared that the Tribunal, headed by Ezekiel Ajayi, committed a serious error in its decision.
The Tribunal’s reliance on witness statements not front-loaded as required by law was deemed unjust, leading to the erroneous nullification of the governor’s election.
Justice Onyemenam emphasized that the Tribunal was legally obligated to consider witness statements filed along with the petition or front-loaded within the stipulated 21 days.
The Court ruled that any amendment to a petition outside this timeframe, as done by the Tribunal, is unlawful.
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Crucially, the Court deemed the statements used by the Tribunal as a product of illegality, lacking probate value for a lawful Court to act upon.
The Court dismissed the over-voting allegations that were central to annulling the election, stating that they were not substantiated by law.
Addressing jurisdictional issues, the Court ruled that the Tribunal unlawfully ignored the governor’s raised concerns, rendering the petition by the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) governorship candidate null and invalid.
Justice Onyemenam highlighted that the denial of a fair hearing against the governor was fatal, rendering all Tribunal decisions invalid.
In a sweeping decision, the Court of Appeal reversed all orders against Governor Sule and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The ruling reaffirms Sule as the lawful governor of Nasarawa State.
INEC had declared Sule the winner of the governorship election, citing his total of 347,209 votes against his closest opponent, David Emmanuel Ombugadu, who secured 283,016 votes.
The tribunal’s initial decision on October 2 had nullified Sule’s victory, upholding Ombugadu as the winner in a split decision. However, with the recent Court of Appeal ruling, Governor Abdullahi Sule’s mandate has been restored, concluding a protracted legal battle. #Nasarawa