ABIA GUBER: INEC Rejects Appeal Court Judgement On Abia, Says Otti Lost The Election

Tobi Soniyi in Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has
rejected the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Owerri Division
which declared Alex Otti, the governorship candidate of the All
Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) winner of the state
governorship elections.

The commission has therefore asked the Supreme Court to set
aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal and its place to
uphold the judgment of the Abia Governorship Election Tribunal
which upheld INEC's declaration of Dr Okezie Ipeazu of the
Peoples Democratic Party as winner of the election.

In a brief or argument settled by INEC's lead counsel, Chief
Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN who led a team of other senior
lawyers including, Dr Livy Uzoukwu, SAN, A.B. Mahmoud, SAN,
H.M. Liman, SAN, Ahmed Raji, SAN among others, the
commission said that it was Ikpeazu who won the election and
not Otti.

INEC informed the Supreme Court that another panel of the Court
of Appeal upheld elections in respect of House of Assembly seats
in Osisioma Local Government Area and Isiala Ngwa North Local
Government Area which took place on the same day the
governorship election was conduct.

It will be recalled that in declaring Otti winner of the election, the
Court nullified the governorship election in the local government
areas stated above.

INEC said: "Before concluding, we crave the indulgence of the
court to very respectfully refer to an intriguing issue.
"It is the fact that the court below, though differently constituted
confirmed on appeal elections in respect of House of Assembly
seats in Osisioma LGA and Isiala North LGA which took place
simultaneously with the Abia Governorship same day, time, in the
same polling units and where voters were accredited using the
same voters; registers and card readers."

INEC further said that the Court of Appeal was wrong in law when
it cancelled the results of elections in three local government
areas of Abia State.

It said "The conclusion that Otti and not Ikpeazu won majority of
the valid votes cast at the election is neither borne out of the
record nor justified under the law."

According to the commission, the court of appeal should have
dismissed Otti's appeal having found that a Returning Officer has
no power to cancel election results having regard to the
provisions of Section 68 (1) of the Electoral Act 2010 as
amended.

The commission also said that Otti's notice of appeal at court of
appeal was incompetent and should have been dismissed for lack
of jurisdiction.