The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja has upheld the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dismissing the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
The tribunal, in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel, ruled that there was no sufficient reason to overturn the outcome of the governorship election held on September 21, 2024. The chairman of the tribunal, Justice Wilfred Kpochi, who delivered the lead judgment, stated that the petition lacked merit and failed to establish a strong case against Okpebholo’s victory.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Okpebholo the winner with 291,667 votes, defeating his closest rival, Ighodalo, who secured 247,655 votes. However, Ighodalo and the PDP contested the result, arguing that the election was not conducted in full compliance with the Electoral Act, 2022.
In their petition, they claimed that Governor Okpebholo did not win the highest number of valid votes and alleged irregularities, including the failure of INEC to properly serialise and pre-record some sensitive election materials. They also argued that results were wrongly computed in 765 polling units, which they said led to the rigging of the election in favor of the APC.
The petitioners presented 19 witnesses and submitted several exhibits, including 153 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines used in 133 polling units. They alleged that results were manipulated at collation centers, leading to over-voting that benefited Okpebholo.
However, the tribunal ruled that the PDP and its candidate did not provide credible evidence to support their claims. The panel noted that the burden of proof rested on the petitioners and that they failed to demonstrate their allegations with strong evidence.
The tribunal also pointed out that some of the claims made by the petitioners were new and were not part of their original petition, leading to their rejection. Although the panel admitted the documents submitted by the petitioners as evidence, it noted that they failed to properly demonstrate their claims through competent witnesses.
Most of the witnesses presented by the PDP and Ighodalo were found to have given hearsay evidence. The tribunal stated that the failure to bring polling unit agents, presiding officers, or voters who directly participated in the election weakened the case.
Additionally, the tribunal dismissed the claim that INEC failed to pre-record election materials, stating that there was no solid proof to support the allegation. It further held that the petitioners could not show that the number of votes recorded in the disputed polling units exceeded the number of accredited voters.
“It is clear that items needed to prove over-voting are; Voters Register, BVAS machines, and Form EC8A,” the tribunal ruled, noting that the petitioners only presented BVAS screenshots instead of the full records needed to back their claims.
The panel concluded that even if the disputed votes were removed, Okpebholo would still have won the election.
Following the tribunal’s decision, Ighodalo’s legal team has vowed to challenge the ruling at the Court of Appeal, signaling that the legal battle over the election result is far from over.
