The Supreme Court of Nigeria, yesterday, affirmed the election of Mr. Rotimi Akeredoly as the Governor of Ondo State.
The seven-panel of the supreme court, in a dissenting judgement of four to three upheld that the appeal to unseat the Governor lacked merit.
The majority decision delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, alongside justice Muhammad Tijani and justice, Mohhamed Garba upheld Akeredolu’s election.
They posited that the appeal by Olutayo Jegede and the People’s Democratic Party lacked merit since the appellants failed to include Yobe State Governor and chairman caretaker Committee of the All Progressives Congress, Mai Mala Buni, a party in the suit.
The majority decision agreed with the decision of the tribunal that the failure of the appellants to include Buni was fatal to their case.
However, the minority judgment led by Justice Mary Peter-Odili alongside Justice Ejembi Eko and Ibrahim Salawa held that since APC was the principal and was made a party, there was no need to join Buni in the suit.
They maintained that, it was the position of the law that Buni being a sitting Governor cannot be acting Chairman of the APC and was therefore wrong to have submitted the name of Akeredolu to INEC as a candidate of the APC.
The main appeal, filed by Jegede and his party, are challenging the competence of the All Progressives Congress (APC) sponsorship of Akeredolu for the election.
There are also three cross-appeals by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), APC and Akeredolu.
Both the Ondo State Election Petition Tribunal had in their separate judgment upheld the election of Akeredolu as Governor of Ondo State.
Jegede and his party are challenging the emergence of Akeredolu as the Governor of the state.