The National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, on Monday sacked the candidate of the member representing Ikwo\Ezza South Federal Constituency, Lazarus Ogbee.
INEC had declared PDP winner with 31,296 votes while it said Mr Chinedu Ogar of All Progressive Congress APC, scored 27,700 votes.
But the tribunal headed by Justice Sika Henry Aprioku disagreed.
It instead declared his opponent and plaintiff in the matter, Mr Ogar of the APC, as the winner of the election.
Mr Ogar had gone to court to challenge the results of the election claiming that his votes were erroneously reduced by INEC to favour Mr Ogbee.
The court agreed with him and restored over 8000 votes earlier canceled by INEC in some wards Ikwo and in Onueke Urban in Ezza South.
The final results of the election should be 36,238 votes for the APC as against PDP’s 33,263 votes.
The Tribunal also directed INEC to immediately issue the APC candidate certificate of return and withdraw the one issued earlier to the PDP candidate.
Quote
“It is the first respondent that won the majority of the lawful votes in Ezza south,”
the judge said. Quote
“The total number of votes scored by the petitioner(APC) and first respondent(Ogbee) for Ezza south/ Ikwo federal constituency is tabulated as follows; Ezza south LGA APC 8, 311, PDP 17,139. Ikwo LGA APC 27, 927 PDP 16, 127. The total votes for APC is 36, 238 . The total votes for PDP 33, 200 votes.
“It is the petitioner that scored the majority of the lawful votes having scored 36, 238 votes as against the PDP candidate the first respondent who scored 33,200 votes. We entirely agreed with the petitioner that he scored the majority of the lawful votes from our own computation.
“The certificate of return issued to the 1st respondent by the 3rd respondent (INEC) as representing Ezza south/Ikwo federal constituency is hereby withdrawn forthwith and must be issued to the petitioner, Comrade Chinedu Ogah as the winner of the election conducted on the 23rd of February, 2019 to the membership of the House of Representatives to represent Ezza South/Ikwo federal constituency,”
the tribunal ruled.“It is the petitioner that scored the majority of the lawful votes having scored 36, 238 votes as against the PDP candidate the first respondent who scored 33,200 votes. We entirely agreed with the petitioner that he scored the majority of the lawful votes from our own computation.
“The certificate of return issued to the 1st respondent by the 3rd respondent (INEC) as representing Ezza south/Ikwo federal constituency is hereby withdrawn forthwith and must be issued to the petitioner, Comrade Chinedu Ogah as the winner of the election conducted on the 23rd of February, 2019 to the membership of the House of Representatives to represent Ezza South/Ikwo federal constituency,”
Mr Ogah expressed happiness over the judgment.
Quote
“It showcased that the mandate of the masses has been restored. This has shown what the tribunal can do. They really looked in the eye of the masses. They have seen that the masses voted for the APC,”
he said.The counsel to the PDP, Roy Nweze, said the party and her candidate will appeal the judgment.
Quote
“I want to say that I am not altogether disappointed with the judgment because I expected that it will be this way. We will start drafting the notice of our appeal today,” he said.
Counsel to the petitioner, Tofa Okweni, hailed the tribunal for carrying out a correct and authentic computation of the result.
“We looked at the entire result of the election when we reviewed the whole thing and found out that the polling unit result which forms the basis of the election were not what were collected at the ward level and we filed our petition challenging the result declared by INEC on the grounds that they did not collate the proper result of the election,”
he said.Counsel to the petitioner, Tofa Okweni, hailed the tribunal for carrying out a correct and authentic computation of the result.
“We looked at the entire result of the election when we reviewed the whole thing and found out that the polling unit result which forms the basis of the election were not what were collected at the ward level and we filed our petition challenging the result declared by INEC on the grounds that they did not collate the proper result of the election,”
Quote
“What they collated did not reflect the outcome of the election at the polling units. We then asked the tribunal which has the power to do by the electoral act to re-compute the result of the election based on the outcome of the election at the polling units,”
he said.| Posted: at | |
crocatum
TRENDING GISTS 
GWR Holder, Tunde Onakoya's Parents Gifted A House
PICS; Police Arrest 8 Suspected Kidnappers, Rescue Four Kidnapped Victims In Delta
"I Can't Breath" -Disturbing Video Shows Handcuffed Black Man's Last Words As Police Knelt On Him Before He Died