The Tribunal Election petitions sitting in Abuja On Wednesday, April 2, declared Senator Monday Okpebholo, the executive governor of Edo State, as the authentic winner of the September 21, 2024, governorship election in Edo State.
The tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi,
concluded its deliberations on the petitions challenging the outcome of the September 21, 2024, governorship election.
The tribunal dismissed all petitions filed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), its candidate Asue Ighodalo, and other opposition parties, thereby upholding the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The PDP and Ighodalo alleged that the election did not comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022. They presented 19 witnesses and numerous documents to support their claims. The APC, in defense, called four witnesses, while the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) did not present any witnesses.
In addition to the PDP’s petition, the tribunal also dismissed a petition from the Action Alliance (AA) and its purported candidate, Adekunle Omoaje, who sought to overturn Okpebholo’s victory. Furthermore, the Accord Party’s (AP) request for a fresh election was also denied by the tribunal.
Following the tribunal’s decision, there were concerns regarding the leak of an unsigned ruling. Both the APC and PDP dismissed the judgment leak as the tribunal ruled on the matter.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had previously declared Governor Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner, with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo of the PDP, who secured 247,655 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome, Ighodalo and the PDP challenged the result at the tribunal, arguing that the election was marred by non-compliance with the Electoral Act, 2022.
