Appeal Court to Deliver Judgment on Edo Guber Poll Friday

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

Appeal Court in Benin City, will today deliver judgment on the appeal filed by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu against the ruling of the Edo state governorship election petition tribunal, which upheld the election of governor Godwin Obaseki of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Justice Ahmed Badamasi, led Election Petition Tribunal had on Friday, April 14, 2017, upheld the election of Governor Obaseki of the APC, who was declared winner of the September 28, 2016 governorship election in Edo state by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

THISDAY gathered that the five man appeal panel led by Justice M.B Dongban-Mensem, had communicated to counsels to the parties that judgment on the matter will be delivered today.

Ize-Iyamu had through his Counsels led by Yusuf Ali (SAN), appealed the judgment, asking the appellate court to rely and use the evidence of the first appellant as recorded by Justice Gilbert Ngele (Member 1) of the lower Tribunal instead of that of the Tribunal’s chairman, Justice Ahmed Badamasi.

He also sought an order deeming the record of his evidence by Justice Ngele, made onJanuary 30, as the correct record of his evidence-in-chief at the lower court, therefore raised five grounds for the application including that the Tribunal’s record compiled and transmitted to the appellate court contained an incorrect rendition of Ize-Iyamu’s evidence by Justice Badamasi, the appellant prayed for a leave of court to correct the said record of appeal and use the supplementary record of appeal they transmitted to the court.

Counsels to both parties argued their briefs on Tuesday May 30, 2017 where Obaseki’s counsels led by Wole Olanipekun urged the court to dismiss the appeal, saying the grounds of appeal were watery, adding that the crux of the petition, which was alleged noncompliance, was abandoned at the trial by the appellants.