Enugu By-Election: APC Challenges PDP Victory In Tribunal

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Saturday, March 6th, 2021

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The Enugu state Chapter of the All Progressive Congress APC and its Candidate in the December 5th, 2020 Isi Uzo House of Assembly bye election, Engr. MacDonald Ejiofor Okwor, have approached the election petition tribunal to challenge the declaration of the peoples Democratic party PDP Candidate as winner of the poll by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC.

African Examiner recalls that the electoral body had after the election, pronounced the PDP flagbearer, Mrs. Amaka Ugwueze, widow of late Chijioke Ugwueze who was representing the said state Constituency before his death winner of the keenly contested poll.

Dissatisfied with the outcome of the poll and subsequent pronouncement by INEC , Okwor and his party, decided to approach the election tribunal to seek redress.

However, the National and State Houses of Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Enugu State on Friday held its inaugural sitting with a promise to deal justly with all parties.

Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Yusuf Halilu, had during the sitting also solicited the cooperation of members of the inner and outer bar to enable the panel to dispose of the matter within the regulated period.

He assured that the tribunal under his watch would discharge its duties with the fear of God.

According to the chairman, “It is a choice to approach the tribunal when one feels aggrieved. One thing is that we will do our best to discharge the matter with the fear of God,” he said.

Halilu, announced that the tribunal would be adjourning for pretrial considering a fresh application filed by the petitioners.

He explained that the adjournment would also enable the respondents to react to the application which sought the leave of the tribunal to front-load the documents the petitioners would rely on in prosecuting the case.

The Chairman, therefore, adjourned the matter until March 10, 2021 for pretrial and arguments on the application.

In his response, lawyer to the respondent, Mr Okechukwu Maduka, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) on behalf of other counsels in the matter pledged the cooperation of members of the bar to ensure that justice was done in the matter.

Also responding, counsel to the APC Candidate, Barrister Godwin Onwusi, hinted that they filed an application for the tribunal to grant them the leave to front-load the documents they would rely on in the case.

Onwusi noted that as at the time the petition was filed, the relevant documents they hoped to rely on were not ready and available as they were with the (INEC).

He said: “We only listed those documents in the petition but did not attach them. We eventually got the certified true copies of the documents and brought this application to enable us front-load them,” Onwusi stated