Anifowose Samson
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court adjourned the judgment in the legal dispute regarding the Edo State Governorship Election Petition indefinitely.
The apex court decided to postpone its ruling after hearing arguments both for and against the election that resulted in Senator Monday Obekpolo being declared the duly elected governor.
Justice Garba Lawal, who presided over the appeal lodged by Mr. Asue Ighodalo and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), informed that the date for delivering the judgment would be communicated to the involved parties.
Ighodalo, represented by his lawyer Ken Mosia, SAN, requested that the Supreme Court remove Obekpolo from office and declare him the rightful winner of the election, arguing that he received the majority of lawful votes.
In contrast, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), represented by Kanu Agabi, SAN, urged the Supreme Court to dismiss Ighodalo’s appeal in its entirety.
Agabi contended that Ighodalo and the PDP had previously described the election as invalid and unlawful due to non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022.
Therefore, he argued that since they declared the election illegal, they could not subsequently request the court to recognize them as winners of what they deemed an illegality.
INEC accused Ighodalo and the PDP of inconsistency in their claims regarding the election and requested that their case be dismissed for lack of merit.
