Tribunal Adjourns Ebonyi Gubernatorial Election Judgement Indefinitely

The governorship election tribunal sitting in Abakaliki on Tuesday adjourned indefinitely judgment on the Ebonyi gubernatorial election.

Sen. Julius Ucha, the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) governorship candidate in the April gubernatorial election, is challenging the election of Chief Martin Elechi of the PDP as the governor.

Mr Nuhu Galadanchi, Chairman of the tribunal, announced this shortly after Counsel to the petitioners 1, 2 and 3 respondents adopted their addresses and replies.

He commended them for their maturity and manner with which they presented their cases, adding that the tribunal would do justice to the case.

“We are here to do justice to the case and we promise you that this is what we are going to do and I commend the Counsel for their maturity and manner of their presentations.”

According to him, the case is adjourned till a date that will be communicated to all the parties in the matter.

The Counsel for Ucha, Prof. Ilochi Okafor, in his address asked the court to put into consideration the material discrepancies evident in the case to determine its judgment.

“The court should consider whether the voter was entitled to vote, if he was accredited and if he actually voted in the April governorship election.

“There is material discrepancies between voters register and form EC 8A, furthermore the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) did not prove the authenticity of the voter register.

“It is time in this Country that INEC is made to appreciate that it has a sacred duty to organise a free and fair election in the country and where it fails to do so the court has a duty to correct any anomaly if democracy is to survive.”

He, therefore, urged the court to nullify votes in polling units were there were discrepancies and material contradictions and prayed the court to uphold his petition.

Messrs Jacob Ibik, Offodile Okafor and Mathew Ugwuocha for the 1, 2 and 3 respondents in the addresses called for the dismissal of the petition with cost as “it lacks merit”.