Ortom, PDP Hail Appeal Court Judgment Upholding His Election Victory

Ortom, PDP Hail Appeal Court Judgment Upholding His Election Victory

The Benue State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its governorship candidate, Governor Samuel Ortom friday hailed the judgment of the Court of Appeal which upheld the victory of Ortom in the 2019 general election.

The appellate court in Abuja yesterday dismissed the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Hon. Emmanuel Jime, for lacking in merit and thereby upheld the judgment of the election petitions tribunal.

A five-man panel led by Justice Fred Oho had dismissed the appeal filed by the APC and Jime.

The Court of Appeal resolved all the five issues considered in the appeal against the appellants and upheld the earlier judgment of the Benue State Governorship Election Petition, which had earlier affirmed Ortom and PDP’s victory at the poll.

In a unanimous judgment by a five-member panel at the appellate court, led by A. O. Belgore, the court said the APC and Jime, should pay N150,000 for bringing the application.

Jime and his party, the APC, had approached the appellate court to challenge the October 7 decision of the Benue State election tribunal which upheld the election of Ortom.

Jime’s lawyer, Yusuf Ali (SAN), had argued that the election did not comply with the provisions of Nigeria’s electoral laws.

But Ortom’s lawyers led by Sabastian Hon (SAN) argued that the petitioners failed to provide credible evidence to back their claims.

They also said the arguments by APC regarding the card readers at the said elections had since been settled in various election decisions.

Reacting to the Appeal Court’s decision, Ortom said that the Appellate Court’s verdict has not only validated the earlier judgment of the governorship elections tribunal but also confirmed the choice of Benue voters in the 2019 polls.

Ortom in a press statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, said, “Once more, the governor returns all the glory and praise to God Almighty for giving him the opportunity to lead the state for another term.”

Ortom also appreciated the leadership and members of PDP in the state, as well as other Benue people for the support given to him.

He lauded his legal team for its outstanding performance at the Tribunal and the Court of Appeal

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