Appeal Court reserves judgement in appeal against re-election of Gov Abiodun

The Court of Appeal has reserved its ruling in the suit seeking to unseat Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State to a later date in the future.

Governor Abiodun, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had earlier called on the Court of Appeal to dismiss the petition filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ladi Adebutu, against his victory in the March 18 gubernatorial election in the state.

Both parties claim the appeal lacks merit.

At the hearing of the appeal at the Lagos Division of the Appeal Court in Lagos on Tuesday, Abiodun, the APC and INEC told the three-man panel of justices, led by Justice Joseph Ikyegh, that the appeal by Adebutu against the judgment of the Ogun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which affirmed his election was ambitious and should not stand.

The Ogun tribunal had, on September 30, dismissed the petitions filed by Adebutu and his party and affirmed the re-election of Governor Abiodun but not satisfied with the ruling, Adebutu had gone on appeal on grounds of massive rigging, vote buying and voters disenfranchisement.

Read also: Gov. Abiodun, Ogun PDP guber candidate, Adebutu, at war over alleged N86bn debt

In his submission, A.J. Owonikoko (SAN), the lead counsel to INEC which was listed as first respondent in the appeal, also urged the court to dismiss the appeal for lacking in merit.

Reacting to the issue of disenfranchisement of 49,000 voters raised by Adebutu’s counsel, Chris Uche (SAN), Owonikoko referred to paragraphs 4.37 to 4.40 on pages 18 and 19 of his brief to point out that the appellants only called 48 witnesses to support their claim.

He further explained that in cases of disenfranchisement, all the disenfranchised voters must be called as witnesses which the appellants failed to do.

He therefore concluded that the court cannot amplify 48 witnesses to 49,000 witnesses as the appellants want.

After hearing the brief from all counsels, the Court of Appeal reserved judgment to a date to be communicated in the future.

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