The Governorship Election Petitions Tribunals sitting in Jalingo, Sokoto and Abeokuta have upheld the election of Taraba State Governor, Agbu Kefas, Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State and Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun.
Kefas is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), while Aliyu and Abiodun are members of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In Taraba State, the three-man panel headed by Justice Ayo Sunmonu dismissed the petition filed by the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) and its governorship candidate, Prof. Yahaya Sani, on the grounds of lack of sufficient evidence.
The NNPP and its gubernatorial candidate had filed a petition before the tribunal seeking the cancellation of the election, alleging that it was characterised by irregularities.
Sunmonu dismissed the petition, stating that the petitioners failed to justify the relief they sought.
He said, “The petitioner failed to prove his ground that the governor was not duly elected, and therefore, the petition lacked merit.”
The counsel to the governor, Mr. Sam Adda, applauded the judgment, saying, “It is a landmark judgment.”
Also, in a unanimous judgment, the Sokoto State tribunal Chairman, Justice Haruna Mshelia, said the governorship candidate of the PDP, Sa’idu Umar, and his party, were unable to prove the six grounds formulated in their petition
He said that the grounds bordered on alleged ineligibility for Aliyu and Gobir to contest, falsification of certificates, variation of names, election frauds, and non-compliance with electoral guidelines.
Mshelia said also that the petitioners were unable to prove the allegations beyond reasonable doubt as required by the law as 70 per cent of the exhibits were out of context because they related to State Assembly elections conducted on the same dates.
He noted, “To prove forgery, two different documents or persons needed to be presented and the petitioners failed while the variation of names issue was settled by Supreme Court judgments.
In Ogun State, the tribunal upheld the return of the Abiodun by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the March 18, 2023 election.
The three-man tribunal consequently, dismissed the petition filed by PDP and its candidate, Hon Oladipupo Adebutu against the return of the governor.
In a unanimous decision of the panel, which was read for over 11 hours, the tribunal held that the petitioner, failed to prove the allegations levelled against the return of the incumbent with credible evidence on most issues raised in the petition.
