Court of Appeal Upholds Governor Hyacinth Alia’s Election Victory

In a decisive ruling on Monday, the Court of Appeal in Abuja dismissed the appeal lodged by Titus Uba, the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), challenging the election of Governor Hyacinth Alia in Benue State.

Justice Onyekachi Aja Otisi, delivering a unanimous judgment, addressed and rejected all three issues raised by Uba and the PDP.

Notably, the court dismissed Uba’s claim of non-qualification against Deputy Governor Samuel Ode, stating that the forgery of INEC Form EC9 was not proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

The court emphasized that issues of non-qualification fall under pre-election matters, exclusively within the jurisdiction of a Federal High Court and not the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, where Uba had initially filed the challenge.

Justice Otisi clarified that such suits must be brought within 14 days of the incident.

Furthermore, the court addressed Uba’s allegation that Governor Hyacinth Alia’s name was not submitted to INEC by the APC within the required 180 days before the March 18 election.

The court ruled in favor of Alia, citing that the primary election was court-ordered and conducted within the specified timeframe.

In the final analysis, Justice Otisi declared that Uba’s appeal lacked merit, affirming the judgment of the Benue State Election Petition Tribunal delivered on September 23.

Consequently, Governor Hyacinth Alia’s election victory was upheld by the Court of Appeal.

Details to follow.