On Friday, the Supreme Court as upheld Abdullahi Sule as the legitimately elected governor of Nasarawa state.
The court unanimously dismissed it for lack of merit, and no costs were granted.
On October 2, the Election Petition Tribunal in Lafia overturned Governor Sule’s victory and declared David Ombugadu the winner of the election.
Consequently, Governors Sule and the All Progressives Congress (APC) sought to overturn the verdict by appealing the tribunal’s decision.
On November 23, the court of appeals overturned the tribunal’s decision and upheld Sule’s election as governor.
The appeals court ruled that the tribunal used legally unacceptable material to proclaim Ombugadu the winner of the March 18 poll.
The appellate court ruled that the panel erred in relying on the evidence of eight PDP witnesses whose oath statements were not front-loaded alongside the petition.
The appellate court also held that Section 285(5) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended; Section 132(7) of the Electoral Act 2022; and Paragraphs 4(5), (6), and 14(2) of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act require that every written statement on oath be filed alongside the petition within the statutorily allocated time.
The PDP Candidate, dissatisfied with the appellate court’s decision, petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn it.
Similarly, the Supreme Court denied the petition of Jibrin Barde, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in Gombe State, who challenged Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s election.
The apex court ruled unanimously that the appeal lacked merit and was superfluous.