Appeal Court affirms Aiyedatiwa as Ondo governor, slams N1.5m fine on PDP, others

The Court of Appeal, Akure Division, on Thursday, July 31, 2024, affirmed the victory of Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa in the November 16, 2024, gubernatorial election in the state.

The Ondo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had, on June 4, upheld the victory of Aiyedatiwa of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and declared petitions against him as “speculative”.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), and Social Development Party (SDP) had filed appeals, alleging that the tribunal did not accord proper analysis to the details of the evidence and exhibits submitted to the tribunal.

The three-man panel of Justice Nimpar Yargata, Justice K.I. Amadi, and Justice I.M. Sani unanimously struck out the appeals for not substantiating the claims of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

The court said the appellants could not substantiate their allegations against the election and the APC.

The court noted that the petitioners failed to prove that there were over-voting and electoral flaws in various polling units, wards and local government areas, where the election took place.

Appeal Court stated that the petitioners could not present credible witnesses at the tribunal to back up their claims of widespread irregularities in the various polling units across the state.

The Appeal Court, therefore, imposed a fine of N1.5 million against the petitioners.

Reacting to the judgement, Aiyedatiwa described it as a welcome development, commending the Appeal Court justices for painstakingly going through the cases and delivering detailed and unanimous judgments.

The governor said: “I give glory to Almighty God who orchestrated this journey from the beginning and used the good people of Ondo State.

“Over 366,000 electorate gave us their mandate on November 16, 2024, to continue governing this state as the seventh democratically elected governor.

“That mandate was validated by the tribunal and has now been reaffirmed by the Appeal Court.

“While some political parties tried to overturn the people’s decision through the backdoor, the judiciary has fulfilled its role by upholding the choice made by the majority of voters across the 18 Local Government Areas of Ondo State.”

The Star