The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Uyo on Thursday struck out a petition brought by the Akwa Ibom State Governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Akanimo Udofia.
Udofia had challenged the election of Pastor Umo Eno of the Peoples Democratic Party as winner of the March 18, 2023 governorship elections.
He sought the disqualification of Pastor Eno, arguing that he presented forged documents to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and that he did not score the highest number of valid votes on the March 18, 2023 governorship elections.
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Udofia also accused the 2nd respondent of being convicted by an Abuja Magistrate Court, hence not qualified to be fielded for elections.
But, in its unanimous decision, the tribunal ruled that the allegations of substantial noncompliance with the electoral law in the conduct of the elections were not sufficiently proven by the petitioners in their case.
Justice Adekunle Adeleye who headed panel also unanimously ruled that the magistrate court in its judgment, nullified its earlier conviction of Pastor Umo Eno and that once a judgement is nullified, it ceases to exist.
The tribunal disagreed with the petitioner on the legality of the setting aside of judgement by the same magistrate.
“It is not the duty of the tribunal to determine if the decision of the magistrate court to upturn its judgment was justified. That falls under the jurisdiction of the Abuja High Court,” the tribunal held.
On the issue of the qualification of the 2nd Respondent, the Tribunal maintained that the Supreme Court had already determined that Pastor Eno was the authentic owner of the WAEC certificates he submitted to INEC.
The lead judgement read by Justice Kadi Usman Sikudu, also held that the petitioners have alleged that Pastor Eno was not the owner of the certificate he submitted to the 1st Respondent, INEC, did not produce any other person, as the authentic owner of the said 1981 WAEC certificate.
The tribunal expunged the evidence tendered by the petitioners’ subpoenaed witness, an acclaimed Interpol officer, who came to tender a report on the 2nd respondent’s WAEC results.
On the petitioners’ allegation that the PDP made use of public office holders such as one Uwem Ekanem as a collation agent in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area, the tribunal ruled that Uwem Ekanem’s membership of the board of Ibom Power Company, cannot be classified as political office and that a party agent’s membership of a company’s board was not sufficient reasons for a candidate to be disqualified.
Akanimo Udofia’s petition, according to the Tribunal, lacked merits as the petitioner was not able to establish one polling unit in which there was noncompliance with the electoral law in the March 18 Governorship elections.
The tribunal also dismissed the ground of the petition by Mr Udofia, challenging the eligibility of Senator Bassey Albert, who came second in the election.
The tribunal insisted that at the time of the elections, there was a subsisting appeal by the convicted YPP candidate and this made him eligible to contest in the elections.
The tribunal dismissed the claims by APC that Senator Albert Akpan was not qualified to be fielded by YPP having already vied for the same office in the PDP.
It ruled that the petitioner not being a member of the YPP, had no basis to challenge who that party fielded and how he emerged as their candidate.
The Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal in Uyo earlier had the previous day, thrown out petitions by governorship candidates of the NNPP, Senator John James Akpan Udoedehe, and ANC, Ezekiel Nyaetok, as lacking in merit.
Commenting on the judgement, counsel to the 2nd Respondent, Essien Udom, SAN flanked by former National Legal Adviser of the PDP, Barr Emmanuel Enoidem, appreciated the judges for painstakingly carrying out the exercise.
“Even the petitioners are happy with the judgement because their lawyer rose to thank the judge for doing a fine job”, Udom told journalists at the court premises.
The tribunal is expected to reconvene on Friday for judgement in the petition by Bassey Albert of the YPP, challenging the election of Governor Umo Eno.
Albert’s case, incidentally is also based on allegations of certificate forgery and substantial noncompliance with the electoral law in the conduct of the 2023 Governorship elections.
Eno beats Nyaetok, Udoedehe, NNPP petitions against Eno
Meanwhile, the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Uyo, Wednesday, dismissed petition brought by the Governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Arc. Ezekiel Nyaetok, challenging the emergence of Pastor Umo Eno of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
This is just as the tribunal struck out petition brought before it by the candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) Senator John James Akpan Udoedehe, also challenging the election of PDP candidate.
Among other grounds, Nyaetok sought the disqualification of Pastor Umo Eno alleging that he was convicted by a Magistrate Court in Abuja and that having been convicted, all votes accrued to him during the March 18 elections ought to be nullified.
He also challenged other candidates who scored more votes than him, alleging that they were handicapped by litigations and legal bars which hampered their eligibility to participate in the elections.
But delivering judgement on the matter, Justice Adekunle Adeleye chaired a panel that unanimously ruled that the same magistrate court presided by Emeka Iyama, delivered a judgment, nullifying its earlier conviction of Pastor Umo Eno and that once a judgement is nullified, it ceases to exist.
The tribunal also held that Nyaetok’s petition lacked merit as the petitioner was not able to establish one polling unit in which there was noncompliance with the electoral law in the March 18 Governorship elections.
Similarly, the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had earlier thrown out suit number EPW/AKS/GOV/03/23, brought by Governorship candidate of the NNPP, Senator John James Akpan Udoedehe, challenging the election of Pastor Umo Eno of the Peoples Democratic Party.
After about one hour and thirty minutes of detailed and considered judgement, the Governorship election Panel, in a unanimous decision concluded that the petition by Sen. John James Akpanudoedehe and his party against Gov Umo Bassey Eno, the PDP, and INEC deserve no less a verdict than a dismissal for lacking in merit.
The governorship election petition by the former Senator followed the defective trajectory of two previous cases dismissed by the tribunal two weeks ago, under the attempt to resurrect the subject matter of certificate forgery leveled against Governor Eno, which was previously buried by the Supreme Court.
Counsel to the PDP had told the tribunal that the petition was “most unambitious,” as the Petitioners neglected and or refused to declare what they wanted.
Sen. John Akpanudoedehe of the NNPP had in his arguments claimed that Gov. Umo Eno was a convict by the Wuse Magistrate Court, Abuja, thereby robbing him of the qualification to have contested the March 18, 2023 governorship election.
He prayed the Tribunal to order that the election be cancelled, and a fresh one conducted within 90 days.
He also alleged that the Governor was born in Enugu, even though he declined to show proof of this claim as he neither front-loaded nor relied upon any document to back it.
Surprisingly, of the over 5000 voting units in the state, the NNPP candidate called only 2 witnesses with himself as one of the two.
Under cross-examination, the NNPP governorship candidate admitted, when shown the enrolled order of the Wuse Magistrate Court repudiating its judgement orders, that he lacked knowledge of the existence of the order before his petition.
Counsel to the PDP and Pastor Umo Eno had noted in their submission that the NNPP petition is most unambitious, as the petitioner has not only failed to prove the criminal allegation of forgery but also failed to state what he wants.
The tribunal, presided over by Justice Adekunle Adeleye, ruled that lacking in merit, the petition had to be confined to the trashcan.
Reacting to the judgement, Counsel to the PDP, Barr Emmanuel Enoidem, said the judgement was in strong agreement with the point of law.
Barr Enoidem said the petitioners failed to prove that Pastor Umo Eno did not meet the constitutional entry requirements for office of the Governor, adding that most of their claims were pre-election matters which they could not also substantiate.
