The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has reserved judgment in a suit filed by Asue Ighodalo of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) against Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the September 21, 2024, election in Edo State.
A three-member panel of the court, led by Justice Mohamed Danjuma, after listening to final arguments by parties, reserved judgment to a date that will be communicated later.
The panel also reserved judgment on two other appeals, filed by Action Alliance (AA) and its National Chairman, Rufai Omoaje, and another filed by one Bright Enabulele and Accord Party (AP), as well as a cross-appeal filed by Okpebholo.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the governorship election in the state.
Ighodalo and the PDP, in their joint appeal, prayed the court to reverse the judgments of the Election Petitions Tribunal delivered on April 2, 2025, which affirmed Okpebholo as governor.
Specifically, counsel for the appellants, Robert Emukpoeruo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, argued that the tribunal failed to clear the issue of non-compliance in their petition.
Emukpoeruo noted that there was no record of the serial number on Form EC25B as required by Section 73(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022.
“The Tribunal said we required evidence of polling agents or witnesses to prove how the forms were filled or not filled. That was not our case. Our case was that the Form EC 25B did not contain the serial numbers,” he said.
The appellants’ lawyer argued that the tribunal was also wrong to claim that the documents his clients tendered at the trial were dumped on it, noting that oral evidence was not needed in their case.
Emukpoeruo said his clients did not challenge the conduct of the election, but the conflict in the results collated and announced. He argued that the results collated at the ward levels were not the results declared at the polling units.
In their own final address, the lawyers for the respondents urged the court to affirm the judgments by the tribunal and dismiss the appeals.
Okpebholo’s Counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged the court to dismiss the appeal, describing it as an “academic exercise”.
Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Emmanuel Ukala and Kanu Agabi, representing the APC and INEC, respectively, also argued in a similar manner and urged the Court to dismiss the appeal and affirm the judgment of the Election Tribunal.
The court, however, reserved judgment on all appeals.
