The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday dismissed as fake the copies of the purported judgment of the Edo State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal that flooded the internet.
APC Publicity Director Bala Ibrahim, confident that the ruling party will win the judgment, claimed that the PDP leaked a fake judgment, knowing they would lose.
In response, PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, accused the APC of using the leaked fake document to gauge public reaction. He maintained that the tribunal’s proceedings had clearly indicated that the PDP would emerge victorious.
On Tuesday, the three-member tribunal, sitting in Abuja, announced that the judgment would be delivered on Wednesday (today) regarding the petition filed by the PDP and its governorship candidate, Asue Ighodalo. The petition seeks to nullify the victory of the APC and Governor Monday Okpebholo in the September 21, 2024, governorship election in Edo State.
The PDP and Ighodalo rejected the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) declaration that Okpebholo secured 291,667 votes to defeat Ighodalo, who garnered 247,655 votes. The petitioners accused Okpebholo of not receiving the highest number of votes and claimed the election was marred by irregularities.
In their petition, marked EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024, the PDP and Ighodalo alleged over-voting, non-serialisation of ballots, incorrect collation of figures, and errors in result computation, all of which they argued violated the Electoral Act.
To support their claims, the petitioners presented 19 witnesses and several documents before the tribunal. They also subpoenaed a Senior Technical Officer from INEC’s ICT Department, who provided 154 BVAS machines as evidence.
In response, Okpebholo called one witness, Usman Majek, who, during cross-examination, confirmed alleged over-voting. The APC called four witnesses, while INEC did not call any.
In their closing arguments, the petitioners urged the tribunal to annul the election, claiming they had sufficient evidence to prove their allegations and that Ighodalo should be declared the winner. Conversely, the respondents, including INEC, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition, stating it lacked merit.
After the hearings concluded on March 3, the tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, reserved judgment. On Tuesday, it was announced that the judgment would be delivered on Wednesday.
Hours later, purported copies of the judgment surfaced online, suggesting a two-to-one split in the tribunal’s decision. Reacting to the leak, Osadolor accused the APC of being behind it to test public reaction.