November 24,(THEWILL) – The Court of Appeal sitting in Lagos, on Friday, affirmed the election of Governor Dapo Abiodun of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the March 18 gubernatorial poll in Ogun State.
In a majority judgment delivered by the duo of Justices J. S. Ikyegh and Muhammed Mustapha, the appellate court dismissed the appeal brought before it by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State, Hon. Ladi Adebutu.
The court held that the appeal lacked merit as it found no substance in it and subsequently dismissed it, affirming the earlier decision of the Tribunal without costs.
Recall that the Ogun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abeokuta had on September 30, 2023, upheld Abiodun’s declaration as the winner of the March 18 governorship election.
Adebutu, dissatisfied, had filed an appeal at the appellate court, challenging the judgment of the election petition tribunal.
However, his appeal was dismissed by the appellate court in a majority decision of 2 to 1. Of significance are the conclusions of the court that it is a petitioner who bears the responsibility to prove that an election was marred by corrupt practices and that the appellants did not.
The court held that the appellants did not prove the allegation of certificate forgery against Governor Abiodun and noted that the Tribunal did not believe the evidence of certain witnesses because of their demeanours and because of the chorused nature of their testimony.
Maintaining that appellate courts generally do not interfere with such assessments, it held that the assessment of the Tribunal is undisturbed.
While upholding the expunging of the evidence of the forensic experts, the court held that there is a huge crater in the petition of the appellants, making same castrated, sterile, and with no legs to stand on.
The court followed the principle that when a decision is ultimately correct, it is immaterial that some reasons may have been applied since the appellate courts concern themselves with the conclusions mainly.
On the issue of disenfranchisement raised by the appellant, the court held that it was the duty of the appellants to prove disenfranchisement by calling voters who could vote but were disenfranchised, adding that in this petition rather, the appellants did not call any disenfranchised voter. Instead, the appellants called persons who truly voted.
About the Author
AYO ESAN, has been actively reporting and analyzing political events for different newspapers for over 18 years. He has also successfully covered national and state elections in Nigeria since the inception of this democracy in 1999.
