The Enugu State Local Government Election Petitions Tribunal has upheld the victory of Hon. Uchenna Joseph Okolo as the Executive Chairman of Awgu Local Government Area.
The tribunal, sitting in Enugu, dismissed the petition filed by Hon. Cajetan Aganigbo of the Labour Party, stating that it lacked merit and was inconsequential.
DAILY GAZETTE earlier reported that the Labour Party and its chairmanship candidate for Awgu Local Government Area in the September 2024 Enugu local government elections, had filed a suit against Hon. Okolo, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) at the Local Government Council Election Tribunal, seeking the cancellation of the election.
In petition number EPT/02/2024, the petitioners claimed that the PDP candidate did not secure the majority of lawful votes cast during the election held on Saturday, September 21, 2024.
Counsel for the petitioners, Chief Sir O.A.U. Onyema, argued that the results announced by ENSIEC were inaccurate, as the PDP candidate did not receive any valid votes.
He maintained that ENSIEC wrongfully declared Hon. Okolo the winner based on erroneous recorded votes.
The petitioners also alleged that the election was marred by irregularities, including over-voting, non-compliance with electoral guidelines, and manipulation of results in favor of the PDP candidate.
They sought an order of the tribunal declaring Hon. Okolo unqualified to contest for the chairmanship position.
DAILY GAZETTE correspondent, who was in court, reports that counsel to the respondents argued that the petitioners had no proof to establish their claims and asked the tribunal to dismiss their petition for being vague, nebulous, vexatious, generic, and an academic exercise.
In its ruling, the three-man tribunal agreed with the position of the respondents, emphasizing that the petition lacked legal grounds and declared it null and void.
The court however did not award costs.
