Lucky Governor, Court Of Appeal Reverses His Sack

First his State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had sacked him from office as governor, but now, the Court of Appeal has reversed the verdict, asking him to return to office.

So, is the fortune of Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, The Eagle can report.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, today, Thursday November 23, 2023, reversed the nullification of his election , and sending jubilations in the camp of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This verdict came by way of a unanimous decision of the three-member panel of justices, which held that evidence before it,  had shown that the tribunal in sacking Sule, relied on legally inadmissible evidence, declaring as winner, he candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) David Ombugadu

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Today’s judgment was read  by Justice Uchechukwu Onuemenam.

The judgement said held that, in declaring the candidate of the People’s Democratic PartyP (PDP), David Ombugadu, as the valid winner of the governorship election, that the tribunal relied on legally inadmissible evidence.

 “Where a trial court admitted and acted on illegally inadmissible evidence, it is the duty of the appellate court to ensure that such illegally inadmissible evidence is expunged.

“A court of law is only allowed to act on legally admissible evidence. If documents are unlawfully allowed by a trial court, the appellate court is duty-bound to exclude the documents and discountenance the evidence”, the judges said,

It also cited Section 285(5) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, Section 132(7) of the Electoral Act 2022, and Paragraphs 4(5) (6) and 14(2) of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act, in their judgement, holding that the evidence of 12 remaining witnesses who testified for the PDP candidate was not sufficient to sustain the judgment of the tribunal.

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More so, the appellate court held that the tribunal was in error

Even the action of the tribunal in deducting  1,868 votes that were credited to Governor Sule on the premise of over-voting in four polling units, did not also go down well with the appellate court.

On the issue of other electoral materials like Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS machines, the Court of Appeal said it did not also prove allegations of  over-voting or any other irregularity.