The National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia, the Abia State capital on Monday sacked three House of Representatives’ members elected on the platform of the Labour Party.
A panel of the tribunal led by Justice Adeyinka Aderibigbe had sacked the member representing Arochukwu/Ohafia Federal Constituency, Mr Ibe Okwara Osunwa, for non-compliance with the electoral act 2022, in a petition filed by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress in the election, Daniel Okeke.
The tribunal ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Osunwa and issue a new one to Okeke.
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In a related development, another panel led by Justice Hajaratu Hajjo Lawa nullified the election of Munachim Alozie, representing Obingwa/Osisioma/Ugwunagbo Federal Constituency.
The court also ordered a rerun within the next 90 days according to the constitution.
The tribunal noted that the LP candidate was declared in error and therefore cannot stand.
Reading out the judgement, Prof. Muhammad Mahmud on behalf of the three-man panel headed by Lawal, said the number of leads is more than the number of voters who were disenfranchised in some polling units who collected their Permanent Voters Cards.
The candidate of the Young Progressives Party, Ibe Michael Nwoke, had approached the court after the declaration of Alozie as the winner of the February 25 National Assembly election demanding its nullification.
Nwoke prayed the court to among other things nullify the election of LP’s Alozie as he was not duly elected and his election was invalid based on the margin of lead.
While counsel to YPP’s candidate adjudged the ruling as fair, the LP’s counsel insisted on appealing the case.
Similarly, another panel of the tribunal nullified the election of the member representing Aba North and South Federal Constituency Mr Emeka Nnamani, for certificate forgery.
The tribunal declared the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance in the election, Alex Ikwueche as the winner of the election and ordered INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Nnamani and Issue a new one to Ikwueche.
(Punch)
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