Supreme Court Affirms Dapo Abiodun’s Election

The Supreme Court on Friday put to rest the legal battle on the Ogun State governorship election with the dismissal of the petition by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its governorship candidate, Oladipupo Adebutu.

The appeal jointly brought before the apex court by the PDP and Oladipupo was thrown out on the main ground of being unmeritorious.

Justice Tijani Abubakar dismissed the petition in the lead judgment he delivered.

Justice Abubakar rejected the prayer by Adebutu and PDP for an order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct fresh elections in the 99 polling units where elections were allegedly cancelled.

The court disagreed with the allegations of election cancellation in the 99 polling units and the claim that INEC never denied the issue.

On the contrary, the Supreme Court held the All Progressives Congress, APC, and its governorship candidate, Dapo Abiodun, were lawfully declared winners of the March 18 poll by the electoral body.

Justice Abubakar agreed that the documents brought by the appellants that elections were cancelled in 99 polling units were worthless papers and lacking in evidential value for having no heading, no date and no signature and name of any official.

The court affirmed the findings and conclusions of the Ogun State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal and the Court of Appeal which had earlier dismissed the petition for want of merit.