24th May, 2024
By Taiye Agbaje
The Imo State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja, on Friday, declared Hope Uzodimma as the validly elected governor in the Nov. 11, 2023 Imo governorship poll.
The three-member tribunal, chaired by Justice Oluyemi Akintan-Osadebay, affirmed the election in a unanimous judgment.
The tribunal dismissed the petition of the Labour Party (LP) and its governorship candidate, Mr Athan Achonu.
The tribunal held that Uzodimma’s election as Imo State governor complied substantially with the provisions of the Electoral Act.
The tribunal further held that the LP, in its petition, failed to prove the allegation of over-voting and non-compliance with the Electoral Act.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Uzodimma of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as winner of the governorship poll held in the state.
Uzodimma scored 540, 308 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who scored 71, 503 votes while Achonu, came third with 64, 081 votes.
None of the other 15 candidates had up to 10,000 votes.
Dissatisfied with the result, Achonu had approached the tribunal, praying the panel to nullify the election.
He alleged electoral malpractices in some parts of the state.