Tribunal grants APC candidate permission to make copies of council election results in Aba

By Ijendu Iheaka

February 13, 2017

The Aba South LG Election Petition Tribunal has ordered Abia State Electoral Commission (ABSIEC) to allow All Progressives Congress candidate, Dr Christian Okoli to inspect materials to pursue his case before the tribunal.

The order also mandated ABSIEC to allow him view and make copies of the December 21, 2017 council elections results in Aba South which shall be certified for him.

The Tribunal added that the permission should extend to viewing and making copies of qualifying documents of the candidates as well as the marked voters register used for the elections.

It further granted the APC candidate permission to serve ABSIEC and other 11 respondents including ABSIEC’s Chairman, Justice I. N. Akomas through substituted service.

Okoli went to the tribunal after Mr Emeruwa Ihuoma of the PDP who polled 38,009 was declared the winner of the December 21, 2017 council elections in Abia.

Although Okoli polled 7,015 to rank third after the Labour Party candidate, Mr Charles Meja who polled N9, 094, he (Okoli) claimed to have rightly won the election.

In an affidavit deposed to on by the Vice-Chairmanship candidate Chijioke Nwogu of Umuogele village in Aba South, he said that their party won the election but ABSIEC declared “by mistake or miscalculation another result”.

The order followed an Ex-Parte motion filed by Okoli’s lawyer, John Okoli-Akrika requesting the respondents, ABSIEC and 11 others to give the APC candidate permission view and make copies of the said documents.

Mr Okoli-Akrika had told the tribunal that the application was brought pursuant to section 36 of the 1999 Constitution.

The lawyer further averred that his petition was also in line with Section 190 of the Local Government Law of Abia State paragraph 40 and the 5th schedule to Abia local government law.

After listening to Okoli-Akrika’s arugument, the Chairman of the Tribunal Magistrate O.K. Onuma granted the request of the APC candidate.

Okoli-Akrika said that the APC had filed some applications and served the respondents earlier without any response from ABSIEC.

According to him, it was in the bid to quicken the trial process and remain within the 60 days given by law to process an election matter which necessitated the filing of the motion.