The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has affirmed Dr. Asue Ighodalo as the duly nominated and authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the upcoming September 21 governorship election in Edo State.
On Monday, a three-man panel led by Justice A. M. Lamido dismissed the case filed by the reinstated Edo Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu. The panel upheld the previous ruling of the trial court, which had declared Ighodalo as the valid candidate.
The Federal High Court had previously ruled that Shaibu did not satisfy the necessary internal dispute resolution mechanisms before instituting the action, rendering the suit premature. The appellate court agreed, stating that the trial court’s decision was unassailable.
The Court of Appeal awarded a cost of N1,000,000 against Shaibu, favoring Ighodalo, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and two other respondents.
The ruling emphasized that Shaibu failed to comply with the provisions of Article 9 (g), (h), and (i) as outlined in the case NYAME V. INEC, which mandates fulfilling specific conditions before filing an action. The court stressed that non-compliance with these provisions directly impacts jurisdiction and cannot be overlooked.
The court also noted that when the authenticity of a relied-upon document is contested, oral evidence is necessary to resolve the issue. Additionally, it maintained that the conduct and results of an election are presumed regular until proven otherwise.
“No evidence from the appellant’s affidavit shows that votes were allocated to the 4th respondent,” the court observed. “The appellant failed to prove his case as held by the trial court. The issue is resolved against the appellant and in favor of the respondents.”
The Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment of the trial court and awarded a cost of N1,000,000 against the appellant in favor of the respective respondents.
