GOVERNORSHIP, National Assembly and state House of Assembly candidates of the different political parties, who the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, declared as losers, in the February 25 and March 18 elections in 25 states, have approached the respective Election Tribunals set up in their states, with about 327 petitions against the electoral umpire, and the declared winners.
Among the losers are at least three governors: Ben Ayade (Cross River State), Abubakar Bagudu (Kebbi) and Simon Lalong (Plateau) who contested the senatorial election.
Petitions filed in Abia State (35) top the list, followed by Anambra (31), Lagos (30), Delta (25), Kano (23), Benue (17) and Plateau (16) while the least (three) are from Yobe.
Cross river (13), Akwa Ibom (15), Edo (14), Bayelsa (9), Ondo (9), Ogun (?), Osun (11), Ekiti (4), Adamawa (8), Kebbi (6), Enugu (14), Niger (9), Taraba (6), Katsina (11), Gombe (2), Bauchi (15), Oyo (?)
There had been no petitions filed in Oyo and Ogun as of the time of this report.
Election losers under the Electoral Act 2022 have 21 days from the date of declaration of results to challenge the outcome.
The situation in affected states is causing anxiety as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been accused of tardiness in the conduct of the 2023 general elections, and the implication is that, should the lapses be proven at the different Election Petition Tribunals across the country, many of the election results may be overturned.
The presidential election result is already being challenged at the Appeal Court, which is the tribunal for the poll, by the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mr Peter Obi respectively.
The trial of the National Assembly and state assembly elections’ petitions begins at the tribunal and ends at the Appeal Court while the governorship begins at the tribunal but stretches up to the Supreme Court.
Source: Vanguard