Abia State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal yesterday in Umuahia, capital of the state, affirmed the election victory of Governor Victor Okezie Ikpeazu.
After reading out in detail issues of allegation and motions, challenging the controversial election, the chairman of the tribunal, Usman Bwala, declared that the petitioner, Dr. Alex Otti, the 2015 Abia governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) failed to prove his allegations of irregularities, malpractices and violence that he alleged to have characterized the said election thus, dismissed his petition as lacking in merit and incompetent and, in effect, upheld the election of the governor.
The petition had alleged that there were no election materials in some polling units, there was bribery of polling agents and INEC officials, no voting in many polling units and that there was the issue of thuggery. He also said there were manipulation of card reading machines and figures and the disappearance of some INEC sensitive election materials in many polling units.
The tribunal maintained that the allegations raised against the governorship poll held on April 4, which led to the cancellation and declaration of the election results as inconclusive in the state and following the re-run poll that was held on April 26 in the affected areas like Obingwa, Osisioma and Isiala Ngwa, were believed to have been regularized.
“And for the petitioner to pray to the tribunal to declare him a winner on the premise of the same allegations believed to have been corrected in the rerun poll, lacks judicial merit and legal competence”, the tribunal ruled.
Reacting, Governor Victor Ikpeazu said the verdict was symbolic of ‘no victor, no vanquished’ while calling on his opponents to join him in moving the state forward.