Kogi State National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal on Wednesday nullified the victory of Senator Abubakar Ohere of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the Kogi Central senatorial election while declaring Natasha Akpoti-Uduagan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner of the February 25 parliamentary election.
According to Justice K. A. Orjiako, the tribunal chai,rman in a unanimous judgment of the 3-man panel, held that Ohere’s results were inflated in 9 polling units of Ajaokuta LGA in the said election while adding that votes of the PDP candidate in the said election were intentional educationnine9 polling units by the INEC Ward Collation officers.
In a further judgment, Justice K. A. Orjiako also held that 3threeother polling unit results were deliberately not entered for the PDP candidate in the same LGA while adding that the NNatasha’sresuthethe9 polling units of Ajaokuta LGA were 1,073 against the 77 there was recorded by the Ward Collation officers, stressing, that of the APC candidate was inflated to 1,553 against the actual figure of 1,031.
“The Tribunal is also convinced that the petitioner’s 996 votes in polling units 009, 046 and O49 polling units of Ganaja village of Ajaokuta LGA was deliberately not recorded at the Ward Collation centre,” Justice Orjiako held.
The tribunal added tha it is not the duty of collation officers to reject results submitted by presiding officers from polling units in elections that followed the electoral guidelines substantially.
He added that “the issues raised by the petitioner is at this moment resolved in favour of the petitioners and after making the proper correction, Natasha Akpoti-Uduagan (PDP) having polled 54,074 against Abubakar Ohere (APC) who polled 51,291 is at this moment declared the authentic winner.”
The tribunal, therefore, subsequently ordered the 3rd respondent (INEC) to withdraw the certificate of returns issued to Ohere and give the same to the PDP Candidate.
However, the court chided INEC for deliberately violating its mandate of conducting a free and fair election by conspiring with political parties to subvert the people’s will.
The tribunal, therefore,e ordered INEC to pay N500,000 to the PDP candidate for ‘subverting justice’ in the Senatorial election.
In his response, Johnson Usman(SAN, counsel to Natasha Akpoti-Uduagan, said the judgment has now validated the winner of the Central Senatorial Dist ct lection.
“This is an ictoryvictothe people of Kogi Central Senatorial district, victory for Kogi in general and victory for the election processes”, he said.