Supreme Court affirms Fubara’s Election Victory

From Lateef Taiwo

The Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision of a five-member panel on Thursday, upheld the election of Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State.

The court in its judgement led by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, dismissed the appeal filed by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr. Tonye Cole, for lacking in merit.

Cole had filed an appeal to challenge the outcome of the governorship election conducted in River state by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on March 18, 2023.

In the lead judgement delivered by Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, the apex court said it found no reason to nullify the concurrent verdicts of the Court of Appeal and the Rivers State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which upheld Fubara’s victory at the poll.

The court held that Cole did not establish that the election was not conducted in compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.

Recall that the APC pulled out from the case against governor Fubara of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, while it was being heard by the Rivers State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal.

Despite the position of the party not to challenge the declaration of Fubara as winner of the gubernatorial contest by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Mr. Cole, vowed to prosecute his petition to its logical conclusion.

INEC had declared that Fubara of the PDP polled a total of 302,614 votes to defeat his closets rival, Cole of the APC who got a total of 95,274 votes.

Dissatisfied with the outcome of the poll, Cole approached the tribunal to challenge it.

The appellant, among other things, alleged that the Rivers State governorship poll was marred by corrupt practices, insisting that it was not conducted in substantial compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.

More so, Cole, alleged that Fubara did not validly resign his previous position as required by the law, before the election held.

He alleged that Fubara continued to sign documents as the Accountant-General of Rivers State, even after he was nominated as the candidate of the PDP for the governorship election.

Consequently, he urged the tribunal to nullify the Certificate of Return that was issued to Fubara and declare that he was not the bonafide winner of the election.

Cole further prayed the tribunal to declare that he was the authentic winner of the gubernatorial contest.

However, both the tribunal and the Court of Appeal dismissed his case for want of merit.