Declare me winner of Nasarawa gov poll, Ombugadu urges S’Court

The Supreme Court, on Tuesday, reserved judgment on the appeals filed against the outcome of the governorship elections in Nasarawa and Kebbi states.

A five-member panel of the apex court led by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun adjourned the matters for judgment after listening to the counsel’s arguments on the appeals.

She noted that parties would be notified when judgment was ready.

In Nasarawa,  the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate, David Ombugadu, are challenging the reinstatement of the Nasarawa State Governor,  Abdullahi Sule, by the Court of Appeal.

The Justice Ezekiel Ajayi-led three-man election tribunal had earlier, in a split two-to-one verdict, sacked Sule and declared Ombugadu as the winner of the March 18, 2023 election.

The Court of Appeal, however, overturned the tribunal’s judgment and reinstated Sule.

Displeased, Ombugadu proceeded to the Supreme Court.

At the hearing of the appeal on Tuesday, Ombugadu’s lawyer,  Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged the court to return his client having been declared the winner of the election by the tribunal.

He held that the appeal court erred when it nullified the tribunal’s judgment and declared Sule as the winner of the poll.

“I urge My Lords to allow the votes of Nasarawa State people to count and be meaningful by declaring the PDP and Ombugadu as the winner of the election as rightly done by the tribunal, “ Agabi said.

But Sule’s lawyer,  Wole Olanipekun (SAN), contended that the tribunal erroneously relied on the BVAS machines tendered as evidence without any demonstration by the petitioners or the court.

Olanipekun added that the tribunal did not see evidence of over-voting in any of the INEC Form EC8 as tendered by the petitioners but went ahead to nullify his client’s election.

Counsel for the APC, Akin Olujimi (SAN), asked the apex court to carefully look into the cited authorities to back up their request for dismissal of the case.

Meanwhile, in the Kebbi State appeal, the PDP and its candidate, Aminu Bande, are urging the apex court to nullify the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which upheld the election of Governor Nasir Idris of the APC.

The appellate court had maintained that the PDP and its candidate failed to establish all the allegations they raised in their petition.

The apex court also reserved judgment after listening to arguments by counsel.