The Supreme Court has upheld the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, dismissing the appeal filed by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asue Ighodalo, for lacking merit
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Thursday by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court ruled that Ighodalo failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove his claims of irregularities, including over-voting and substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act, during the September 21, 2024 governorship election.
The court affirmed the earlier decisions of both the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which had validated Okpebholo’s election as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The Supreme Court noted that many of the documents presented by the PDP were simply “dumped” before the tribunal without being properly demonstrated through competent witnesses, especially in relation to 432 polling units out of over 4,500 in the state. It also faulted the failure to call witnesses to back up claims tied to Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines.
“The appellant did not satisfactorily discharge the burden of proof placed on him by the law,” the court held.
Ighodalo had urged the court to overturn the Court of Appeal’s May 29 decision and declare him the rightful winner, claiming that the election was not conducted in compliance with the law. However, INEC, Okpebholo, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) all argued for the appeal’s dismissal, which the court granted.
INEC had declared Okpebholo winner of the election with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who polled 247,655 votes.
The tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, had also dismissed similar petitions filed by the Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and their respective candidates. It ruled that the PDP and other petitioners failed to prove their allegations with credible evidence or testimony from polling unit agents and voters.
The judgment marks the final legal validation of Okpebholo’s victory, effectively ending all electoral disputes over the 2024 Edo governorship poll.
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Good for him