The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed three separate appeals brought before it by some governorship candidates seeking nullification of the election of Akwa Ibom Governor Umo Eno on account of alleged certificate forgery.
The petitions of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Young Progressive Party (YPP) and New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) were all dismissed by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji.
The petitions by the APC and its governorship candidate, Akanimo Udofia, YPP and its gubernatorial candidate, Akpan Bassey as well as NNPP and its governorship candidate, John Udoedehe, were thrown out by Mr Abba-Aji upon their withdrawals.
The lead counsel to the respective parties withdrew their separate appeals following hints from the court’s panel of justices that they had no merit.
Counsel in the matters had made spirited, futile attempts to convince the apex court that Emo Eno Bassey and Bassey Eno Emo were not the same and, as such, that the governor allegedly forged his Secondary School Certificate.
Their arguments, especially forgery allegations, did not go well with the justices, who questioned the lawyers on whether the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) had given evidence to establish the criminal allegations.
Upon admission that WAEC did not testify in the matter, the lawyers opted and separately withdrew the appeals.
In November last year, the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal affirmed Mr Eno’s victory in the governorship election held on March 18, 2023.
In its judgment, the appellate court dismissed three separate appeals filed against the governor’s election.
While affirming the September 28, 2023 judgments of the election petition tribunal, the three-member panel of justices headed by Festus Obande dismissed the appeal brought by the governorship candidate of the YPP, Bassey Akpan, and his party against the INEC, Mr Eno, and the PDP.
Mr Obande also granted judgments in favour of the governor against the appeals of the governorship candidate of the NNPP, John Udoedehe, and Akanimo Udofia, of the APC.
The appellate court declared in the unanimous judgments that all three appeals lacked merit.
(NAN)
