The petition filed by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC),Chinenye Anyim, against the candidate of the PDP and governor of Abia state, Okezie Ikpeazu, has been dismissed by the state’s Election Petition Tribunal for negligence in prosecution on the part of the petitioners.
Counsels to INEC and the PDP’s, Mr. Livy Uzoukwu, told the tribunal that neither the petitioner nor their counsels appeared in court and there was no letter explaining their absence.
Livy Uzoukwu, citing relevant provisions of the electoral act, prayed the tribunal to apply the provisions of the relevant section of the law which mandated the tribunal to dismiss the petition in cases where the petitioners failed to appear before the tribunal.
Also, counsel to the PDP, Henry Balogu, told the tribunal that the petitioners and their counsels were in court on the last day of the adjournment and were aware of the day’s sitting but deliberately chose not to be in court. He then urged the tribunal to strike out the matter.
Counsel to the fifth and sixth respondents, Mike Onyeka, urged that the petitioner had indicated that they had lost interest in the matter by their failure to appear in court adding that there was no written consent to that effect. He therefore, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition.
The Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Usman Bwala, while dismissing the petition, cited relevant sections of the Electoral Act which he said the petitioner failed to comply with in the prosecution of the matter.
