KOGI GOVERNORSHIP: Tribunal Dismisses Wada’s Petition Against Bello, Battle Moves To A’Court

KOGI State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja on Tuesday dismissed the petition by the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate in the last year’s governorship election in the state, Idris Wada, challenging the election of the incumbent Governor Yahaya Bello.

The Justice Halima Mohammed-led three-man panel held in its judgment that the petition jointly filed by former governor of Kogi State, Wada, his running mate, Sunday Awoniyi, and their party, the PDP, lacked merit.

The tribunal had earlier in the judgment struck out the petition while upholding the notice of preliminary objection raised by Bello, his party, the All Progressives Congress, and the Independent National Electoral Commission, against the petition, but still went ahead to determine it on its merit.

Wada and others had in their petition asked the tribunal to hold that he polled the highest lawful votes in the November 21 election and the December 5, 2015‎ supplementary election and should be returned as the elected Governor of the state.

Uncomfortable with the verdict, Wada has rejected the verdict of the election tribunal saying that the verdict would be challenged at the appellate court.

 “We believe in the judiciary and we still have confidence in the judiciary of the country. Since the law of the land provides that we can still move ahead to a higher court, we will utilise the opportunities available to us.

“We know that the judiciary is the last hope of the common man, so we are definitely going to file our appeal and we are confident of getting judgment”, he said.