The Election Petition Tribunal for the governorship election held in Ondo State on October 10, 2020, is set to deliver judgement on the petition seeking to upturn the victory of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.
With the judgement fixed for April 21, 2021, by the tribunal, the three-man panel led by Justice Umar Abubakar transmitted the date through a notice to all parties in the case on Friday, April 16, 2021.
Recall that the parties had on February 25, adopted their written addresses before the tribunal sitting in Akure, the state capital.
Challenging the emergence of Akeredolu as winner of the governorship poll, the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Eyitayo Jegede had in the petition filed before the Tribunal faulted the candidacy of Akeredolu and his deputy, Lucky Ayedatiwa as the standard bearers of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
According to Jegede in his petition, Akeredolu and Ayedatiwa were not validly nominated by the APC.
While pleading with the three-man panel to dismiss Jegede’s petition, the defence counsels had stated that the petitioner had admitted in paragraph 12 of its petition the sponsorship of third and first respondents but failed to prove that they were not validly nominated.
According to the counsel to Akeredolu and Aiyedatiwa, Akin Olujimi, and that of the APC, Lateef Fagbemi, the Tribunal also lacks the jurisdiction to interpret section 183 of the constitution as prayed for by the petitioner.
