Supreme Court Resolves Governorship Election Appeals in Six States
The Supreme Court has delivered judgments on appeals challenging the outcomes of governorship elections in Gombe, Kebbi, Ogun, Kaduna, Nasarawa, and Delta states.
Recall that last week, the apex court finalized the fate of 10 state governors, such as Hyacinth Alia of Benue, Alex Otti of Abia, and Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos, among others. Notably, no governor was removed from office in the decided cases.
In Ogun, the apex court affirmed the election of Governor Dapo Abiodun, dismissing appeals by Ladi Adebutu and the Peoples Democratic Party, who sought fresh elections in 99 polling units. The Appeal Court in Lagos had earlier affirmed Abiodun’s re-election in a split decision on November 24, 2023.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court affirmed the election of Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, dismissing appeals by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Ovie Omo-Agege, as well as the Labour Party and its candidate, Ken Pella. The court found the appeals lacked merit, upholding the decision of the court of appeal in Lagos.
In Nasarawa, the Supreme Court upheld the election of Governor Abdullahi Sule, overturning the earlier tribunal decision that declared David Ombugadu of the PDP as the winner. The court held that the tribunal wrongly relied on evidence from PDP witnesses and ruled that the appeal lacked merit.
The apex court also upheld the judgments of lower courts in Gombe, affirming the election of Governor Inuwa Yahaya, as well as in Kebbi, confirming Nasir Idris as the duly elected governor. The cases involved challenges to the election results by Jibrin Barde of the PDP in Gombe and Aminu Bande of the PDP in Kebbi.
The Supreme Court also affirmed Uba Sani’s election as Kaduna State governor, dismissing the appeal by the PDP and its candidate, Mohammed Ashiru Isa. The court of appeal in Abuja had previously affirmed Uba Sani’s election on November 24, 2023, rejecting claims of irregularities and non-compliance with electoral provisions.
In all these cases, the Supreme Court maintained its decisions, emphasizing the lack of merit in the appeals and upholding the election results.
