Supreme Court

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has congratulated Governor Monday Okpebholo on his confirmation as the duly elected candidate in the September 2024 gubernatorial election in Edo. Akpabio, in a congratulatory message personally signed by him on Friday in Abuja, described the Supreme Court verdict as the triumph of democracy and the will of the people. Akpabio said, “What the apex court in the land has done is to affirm the will and wishes of the overwhelming majority of the people of Edo State. It shows that the election was transparent, free and fair. “The declaration by the Supreme Court in favour of Sen. Okpebholo against Mr Asue Ighodalo of the Peoples Democratic Party has proven that elections are won at the ballot and by people who have identified with the grassroots.” The Senate President added that the ruling confirmed Okpebholo’s grassroots popularity and the growing acceptance of the All Progressives Congress in Edo State. He added, “This milestone affirms Okpebholo’s mandate and paves the way for him to continue delivering exceptional service to the good people of Edo. “He has done well in the past seven months, and I believe he will do excellently well in his four-year tenure. “My distinguished brother, His Excellency Senator Monday Okpebholo, on behalf of my family and constituents, the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I extend my warmest congratulations to you and the wonderful people of Edo on this landmark victory at the Supreme Court.” He assured the governor of the Senate’s support and collaboration in promoting the state’s development. “Congratulations once again, Gov Okpebholo. I look forward to a robust working relationship with you,” the Senate President said. NAN reports that in a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court dismissed as lacking in merit an appeal the candidate of Ighodalo filed to nullify the outcome of the governorship election. The apex court held that it found no reason to set aside the concurrent judgments of both the Court of Appeal and the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which returned Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as the valid winner of the gubernatorial contest. It held that the Appellant failed to adduce credible and admissible evidence to substantiate his claim that the election was marred by irregularities that included over-voting and substantial non-compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act. Likewise, it held that the Appellant failed to call relevant witnesses to demonstrate some of the evidence he tendered in support of his case, especially the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System machines. It held that some of the proof of evidence, which were tendered from the Bar, were merely dumped on the tribunal without establishing alleged non-compliance in 432 out of a total of 4,519 polling units in the state. NAN