Appeal Court constitutes tribunal for Anambra by-elections

The Court of Appeal has set up an Election Petitions Tribunal to hear cases arising from the August 16 National and State House of Assembly by-elections in Anambra State.

In a statement on Wednesday in Awka, the tribunal’s secretary, Mr Ibrahim Usman, said the panel would handle petitions related to the Anambra South Senatorial District and Onitsha 1 State Constituency polls.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is conducting the elections to fill vacancies created by the deaths of Senator Ifeanyi Ubah in July 2024 and Justice Azuka, a member of the State House of Assembly, who was kidnapped and later found dead in February.

Usman said the tribunal, chaired by Justice M. B. Dongben-Mensen, was established under the powers conferred on the President of the Court of Appeal by the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the Electoral Act, 2022.

The Chief Judge of Anambra State, Justice Onochie M. Anyachebelu, has approved the use of the Tribunal Court Hall at the High Court of Justice, Judiciary Headquarters, Awka, for the proceedings.

He advised members of the public seeking further information to contact the tribunal’s Registry or Secretariat at the stated location.