The Court of Appeal in Abuja has returned Abdullahi Sule of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as governor of Nasarawa State after setting aside a Tribunal decision that voided his election and instead declared David Ombugadu of the People’s Democratic Party winner.
The three-member Appeal Court panel led by Justice Uchechukwu Onyemenam this Thursday said the Tribunal acted in error by failing to consider the issue of jurisdiction before arriving at its judgment on October 2.
In the lead judgment read by Justice Onyemenam, the Appellate Court holds that the Tribunal had a fundamental duty to hear issues of jurisdiction before going ahead to hear the main case, as failing to do so renders the outcome null and void.
It holds further that the Tribunal’s failure to hear Sule’s issue on jurisdiction raised during the Tribunal proceedings renders it in breach of his rights to a fair hearing.
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Speaking on the merit of the the case, the Appellate Court says David Ombugadu and the PDP didn’t have enough grounds to sustain the claim of over voting which was key among the reasons for the Tribunal voiding the election of Abdullahi Sule of the APC.
The Appellate Court, further holds that Ombugadu and the PDP could not prove overvoting owing to their failure to produce original INEC documents, adding that the Tribunal therefore erred in deducting 1,868 votes of Sule in four polling units.
On the contentious Chiroma and Gayam ward, the Court holds that Ombugadu and PDP brought witnesses whose statements are borne out of hearsay.
Such a country….. In all these, where is the choice of the people…. These rougue Judiciary people are now the ones hiring and sacking based on their technicalities jargon not merit of the judgement…. If truly majority voted the APC man… Congratulations to them…. The majority votes must be the deciding factor not technicalities and corruption…Â
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