Appeal Court Affirms Edo Governor Okpebholo’s Victory

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld Monday Okpebholo’s election as Edo State’s governor. A three-member panel, in a unanimous ruling on Thursday, confirmed the prior decision of the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had validated his win in the 21 September 2024 election.

The Court of Appeal rejected the appeal brought by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, thereby solidifying Mr. Okpebholo’s victory in the contested election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced Mr. Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner with 291,667 votes, while Mr. Ighodalo took second place with 247,655 votes. Other candidates in the election garnered only a small portion of the votes.

Mr. Ighodalo contested the results at the Edo State Governorship Election Tribunal in Abuja, claiming widespread irregularities, overvoting, malpractices, and violations of the Electoral Act.

The tribunal, in its judgement in April, dismissed his claims as unproven.

Believing strongly in his case, Mr. Ighodalo quickly appealed the tribunal’s verdict at the Court of Appeal.

On Thursday, the Court of Appeal affirmed the tribunal’s ruling, stating that Mr. Ighodalo and his party failed to present enough evidence in support of their case.

The ruling by the Court of Appeal is not the final word in election disputes, as parties dissatisfied with the outcome can further appeal to the Supreme Court, which holds the ultimate authority.

Mr. Okpebholo, a candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), participated in the gubernatorial election on 21 September 2024.

Frustrated with the tribunal’s decision, Mr. Ighodalo sought recourse by appealing at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

Upon receiving the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the tribunal judgement, the PDP Chairman in Edo, Tony Aziegbemi, described it as a miscarriage of justice that ignored facts and rewarded impunity.