Tribunal throws out PDP candidate’s petition against Cross River gov’s election

The Cross River State Election Petitions Tribunal, on Tuesday, dismissed the petition of  Professor Sandy Onor against the election of Governor Bassey Otu for lacking in merit.

The Tribunal, in the petition marked EPT/ CR/ Gov/2/2023, struck out all the three grounds of petition by the PDP governorship candidate, describing the petition as incompetent, shambolic and a mere academic exercise.

The three Judges of the tribunal panel, Justice Okenya Inneh, Chairman, Justice M Omar, member and Justice O Olatawusu took time to read their judgement in the four hour long ruling that took place at High Court 10, Moore Road, Calabar.

The judges held that on the grounds by the petitioner that Otu and Odey were not qualified to contest the election because Odey, who ran on the same ticket with Otu as deputy, was still a member of PDP when he was picked to run as deputy governor on the platform of APC, the judges held that selection of a candidate to contest an election is the domestic affairs of a party and nobody can pry into the affairs of a party by ‘looking through the window” since he is not a member of the party.

“The issue of qualification or sponsorship of a candidate is the domestic affairs of a party so no one can decide what the party should do when he is not a member of that party”, the judges ruled.

Also on the grounds by PDP that Otu did not possess the prerequisite qualifications to contest the election, the Tribunal held that he submitted the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Form EC9 which indicated his academic qualifications and any interested party ought to have gone to a High Court within fourteen days to challenge such information.

“If there is a misinformation, misconception, or falsification of information on Form EC9, an interested party ought to go to a High Court to institute a matter within fourteen days of the supply of information which was not done by the petitioner, therefore this is struck out”, the judges ruled.

The Tribunal further held that the governor attended a primary school in Calabar, Duke Town Secondary School and University of Calabar and if there are discrepancies on the dates of the certificates, those are not intentional but errors which do not render the certificate void.

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The petitioner had also raised the issue of Odey lying on oath by swearing that he has not sworn allegiance to the United Kingdom stating that this disqualifies him from contesting for elective position in Nigeria.

The Tribunal, however, held that the petitioner failed to prove his case by providing documents before the tribunal.

The judges further held that lying under oath is a criminal matter which should be proved with evidence, ruling that the two witnesses brought by the petitioner failed to provide documentary evidence or answer questions put to them to the satisfaction of the Tribunal.

“This is therefore grossly trivial, misguided and hypothetical. This issue is therefore struck out’, the judges further ruled.

The Tribunal dismissed the issue of membership of the PDP and swearing of allegiance to the United Kingdom by Odey, on the ground that they have been subjects of litigations by High Court and Appeal Court.

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