Appeal Court affirms Sani, Nwifuru as Kaduna, Ebonyi govs

• In Kaduna, the appellate court affirmed the judgement of the State Election Petitions Tribunal, which earlier dismissed the petition of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Isa Ashiru, against the election of Governor Sani
• In Ebonyi, the panel resolved all the five issues raised against the appellant and dismissed the appeal for lacking in merit

The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, has declared Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State as validly elected governor during the March 18 election.

The appellate court affirmed the judgement of the State Election Petitons Tribunal, which earlier dismissed the petition of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Isa Ashiru, against the election of Governor Sani.

The court held that the Tribunal was right in dismissing the petition of the PDP and Ashiru because the petitioners abandoned their petition for their failure to apply for issuance of pre-hearing information sheet after close of pleadings as required by paragraph 18(1) of the first scheduled to the Electoral Act, 2022.

The court, however, held that the Tribunal acted in error when it depended on inadmissible evidence to order the conduct of supplementary polls in 22 polling units of four local government areas (LGAs) of the State where the exercise was deemed inconclusive.

The court stated that a key witness called by the PDP during the Tribunal hearing merely gave hearsay evidence as he was not present when the malpractices he alleged happened.

Similarly, the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, on Friday, affirmed the election of Fran­cis Nwifuru as the duly elected governor of Ebonyi State in the March 18 governorship election.

The three-member panel presided over by Justice Jummai Sankey, in its unanimous decision, dismissed the appeal filed by Chukwuma Odii of the Peoples Democratic Party.

The panel also resolved all the five issues raised against the appellant and dismissed the appeal for lacking in merit.

Justice Sankey, in her lead judgment, held that the PDP and its candidate lacked the legal right to meddle in the internal affairs of the All Progressives Congress as it relates to the nomination of candidates.

Details later…