Kogi guber: Supreme Court dismisses order barring SDP’s Ajaka from inspecting election materials

The Supreme Cour, on Thursday, upheld the order of the Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja which granted the candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the November 2023 governorship election in Kogi permission to inspect materials used in the conduct of the election.

It be recalled that the apex court had stayed the execution of the orders of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, setting aside the inspection order.

The Tribunal in November last year granted an ex parte order, allowing the SDP and its governorship candidate in Kogi for the 2023 election, Murtala Ajaka to carry out a forensic examination of all the Bimodal Voters Accreditation system (BVAS) used in the election, among other reliefs.

A three-man panel of justices of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice J.O.K. Oyewole, in its ruling, on March 1, 2024, set aside the inspection order.

However, the apex court on Thursday dismissed the decision of the Court of Appeal and upheld the decision of the Tribunal.

In a unanimous decision delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the Supreme Court held that the order of the Tribunal was within the scope of Section 146 of the Electoral Act.

The apex court held that the motion seeking to set aside the decision of the trial Tribunal was incompetent and added that, “We do not agree with the Court of Appeal. The motion was filed out of time. Secondly, the order of the trial court was within the scope of Section 146 of the Electoral Act. In light of the foregoing, this appeal is allowed, and the cross-appeal dismissed with no costs”.

Ajaka and his party are challenging the declaration of Alhaji Usman Ododo as the winner of the November 11, 2023 governorship election in Kogi.

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