A five-man panel of the appellate court, led by Justice OYEBISI OMOLEYE, delivered the judgment following an appeal filed by the Action Alliance, All Progressive Grand Alliance and the All Progressive Congress challenging the election of the governor.
All appellants argued in their appeal that the governor did not obtain the constitutionally required one-quarter of the votes cast in at least, two-thirds of the twenty-seven local government areas of the state, as provided under Section 179 of the Constitution.
The court commenced the hearing with the appeal of UCHE NWOSU of the Action Alliance but the later upheld the preliminary objection by the PDP and Governor IHEDIOHA that the appeal was faulty.
After listening to and resolving all the issues raised by NWOSU and the Action Alliance against the PDP, Justice OMOLEYE, ordered him to pay a sum of five hundred thousand naira.
While dismissing the appeal by Senator HOPE UZODINMA and the All Progressive Congress, the court also awarded the cost of five hundred thousand naira against the appellants.
There was however a dissenting judgment by one of the judges, who rejected the cross-appeal, filed by Governor EMEKA IHEDIOHA and ordered him to pay the sum of one million naira to Senator UZODINMA and his party.
The court also dismissed the appeal filed by Senator IFEANYI ARAREUME and the All Progressive Grand Alliance and also awarded a cost of five hundred thousand naira against the appellants.
