The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal lodged by Dr. Umar Ardo, the gubernatorial candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), challenging the election victory of Ahmadu Fintiri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the Governor of Adamawa State.
Ardo had sought to overturn the decisions of both the Adamawa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which had previously upheld Fintiri’s victory. During the proceedings, Ardo’s counsel, Mr. Sylvester Imahnobe, argued that his client, who garnered over 6,000 votes, could have emerged victorious in a fair election.
The crux of Ardo’s plea was to nullify the election, citing non-compliance with the Electoral Act. However, when questioned by the panel of five justices, led by Justice John Inyang Okoro, Imahnobe failed to demonstrate how the alleged non-compliance impacted the election results.
In response to Justice Emmanuel Agim’s query on the substantial effect of the purported non-compliance, Imahnobe couldn’t provide evidence. Justice Okoro emphasized the incompetence of the appeal, leading Imahnobe to request its withdrawal, a move unopposed by the respondents.
Consequently, Justice Okoro dismissed the appeal, asserting that the “sister appeal will abide by the outcome of this appeal.” The Court of Appeal had earlier concurred with the Tribunal, stating that the allegations of corrupt practices and non-compliance against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) lacked merit.
Justice Ugochukwu Ogaku’s judgment affirmed, “This appeal is bereft of merit. The decision of the Tribunal dismissing the Petition is hereby affirmed.”