The Election Petition Tribunal for the National Assembly in Enugu has invalidated the Labour Party’s representative, Prof. Sunday Nnamchi, election for the Enugu East/Isi-Uzo Federal Constituency in Enugu State.
The verdict was delivered on Friday in response to the appeal filed by Prince Cornelius Nnaji of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The tribunal, led by Justice A. M. Abubakar and three members, confirmed Nnaji as the legitimate winner of the February 25, 2023 election.
Prince Nnaji, who has previously served in the federal legislature, contested Nnamchi’s win as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission. He contended that Nnamchi was not eligible to run in the election under the Labour Party’s banner. In a collective decision, the tribunal agreed with the appellant’s claim, affirming that the Labour Party’s nominee was not eligible to participate in the election.
Meanwhile, Chief Samuel Ortom, the former governor of Benue State and the opposition PDP, congratulated Senator Gabriel Suswam on his victory at the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal as the 2023 Benue North East Senatorial District’s winner. Ortom praised his predecessor’s legal route to justice and congratulated the state’s PDP.
According to a report by The Guardian, the PDP leadership in Benue also praised the tribunal for its just verdict grounded on solid evidence and facts. The party’s spokesperson, Bemgba Iortyom, said,
“The party celebrates this victory, especially as it underscores its major presence in the state’s upper house of the National Assembly with two out of three Senators.”
The tribunal, under Justice Ory Zik-Ikeorha’s guidance, invalidated Senator Emmanuel Udende of the All Progressive Congress in Benue State and declared Suswam of the PDP as the rightful winner of the senatorial election held on February 25, 2023. The tribunal found that Suswam and the PDP had adequately substantiated their claims of irregularities like tampering, lack of signatures on documents, and exclusion of valid votes. Consequently, it invalidated 51,895 votes attributed to Udende and 21,229 votes for Suswam.
Following the vote adjustment, Suswam had 90,590 votes to Udende’s 82,699. However, A distinguished member among the trio constituting the panel believed that the evidence presented by the ex-governor should have been more compelling to uphold his claim. This member consequently rejected the appeal and ruled a penalty of N100,000 in favor of each respondent against the appellants.
