In a letter dated March 4th 2024 written by Wole Olanipekun (SAN), marked WOC/ABJ/VOL.01/074/2024 and addressed to the Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmud Yakubu, Idahosa said a legal action with Suit No.FHC/ABJ/CS/274/2024 between himself vs Sen. Monday Okpebholo, the APC and the INEC has already been instituted where he is claiming the candidacy of the party and urged INEC to take cognizance of the suit.

In the suit, Idahosa said

– He won the February 17th 2024 exercise monitored by the INEC where he was declared winner.

– He argued that the 20th February primary was not a standalone election but a continuation of the February 17th exercise and so the results of the 17th exercise cannot be jettisoned.

– He said “INEC monitored the February 17th exercise where he got 40,453 votes.

– He added that APC subsequently confirmed to INEC that the primary election held as scheduled on 17th February was inconclusive and will be completed on 22nd February, 2024 and invited INEC to monitor the completion exercise.

– He said Monday Okpebholo scored 12, 433 votes at the February 22nd primary while he got 6,541 votes.

He also added that Monday Okpebholo scored 100 votes at the February 17th primary election while he scored 40,453 votes.

– He disagreed that the February 17th primary was inconclusive but insisted that the summation of both primaries (February 17th and 22nd) indicates that he won convincingly.

Summation:

Dennis Idahosa – 46,994 votes
Monday Okpebholo – 12,533 votes

– He said an addition of the votes of all the other aspirants from both results will neither match nor supersede his votes from 17th February.

He cited other cases where INEC had cause to conduct supplementary elections including the 2018 governorship election in Osun State where a winner was declared by INEC upon a summation of the votes from the main and supplementary election.

– He also cited a case where INEC declared the 2016 governorship election in Kogi State inconclusive and conducted a supplementary election. The Commission declared a winner upon the summation of the votes from both balloting exercises and the correctness of same was affirmed by the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC (2016) 18 NWLR (Pt. 1543) 61 at 121.

– He said the representation by APC to INEC that the process of 22nd February,2024,was a completion acknowledges that it is not a standalone and indeed has its foundation in the election of 17th February, 2024.