The Supreme Court, sitting in Abuja on Friday, upheld the election of Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State while dismissing the appeal challenging his victory.
Justice Tijani Abubakar-led five-member panel of justices unanimously held that the appeal by Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii of the PDP lacked merit, adding that Odii and the PDP failed to prove allegations of non-qualification to contest the election and non-compliance with Electoral Act, 2022 in the election.
The Informant247 reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the March 18 gubernatorial election in the state.
Charles Igwe, the State Returning Officer, while declaring the result at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) State Headquarters in Abakaliki, said Francis Nwifuru garnered a total of 199,131 votes cast across the 13 local governments in the state to defeat his closest challenger, Ifeanyi Odii of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who scored a total of 80,191 votes, while the candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Bernard Odoh, came third with 52,189 votes.