Judiciary
THE Supreme Court has affirmed the election of Hycinth Alia as the governor of Benue State.
The apex court dismissed an appeal by Titus Uba of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Uba had challenged the victory of Alia of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Election Petitions Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, Abuja, had affirmed Alia’s election as Benue governor, following his declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the winner of the March 18 governorship election.
The Court of Appeal had said it lacked the jurisdiction to hear the petition because it was a pre-election matter.
The court held that Uba should have prosecuted the forgery allegation against the deputy governor, Sam Ode, at the high court.
It also held that Uba failed to prove allegations of forgery against Ode beyond a reasonable doubt.
On Monday, the PDP candidate pursued the matter to the Supreme Court, and the apex court dismissed his appeal and affirmed Alia’s election.
Alia, a first-time governorship contestant, had wrested power from the PDP in Benue.
Alia succeeded Samuel Ortom of the PDP, who was governor of the state for eight years. (vanguard)
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-January 08, 2024 @ 12:38 GMT|
Tags: Hycinth Alia INEC Samuel Ortom
