The Supreme Court has upheld the election of Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, dismissing an appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
Delivering a unanimous verdict on Thursday, a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba declared that the appeal lacked merit and subsequently dismissed it.
The court found no justification to upturn the earlier decisions of the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which had both affirmed Okpebholo’s victory under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Justice Garba stated that the PDP and Ighodalo failed to provide credible and admissible evidence to support their claims of widespread irregularities, including over-voting and non-compliance with the Electoral Act.
The apex court also faulted the PDP for failing to call essential witnesses to support the documents they submitted, particularly those related to the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).
According to the Justices, many of the materials tendered in evidence were “dumped” on the tribunal without proper adumbration or evidence in proof thereof.
“The Appellant did not satisfactorily discharge the burden of proof placed on him by the law,” Justice Garba declared.
Ighodalo had in the appeal, asked the apex court to set aside the May 29 decision of the Court of Appeal, arguing that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act and that he secured the highest number of valid votes.l cast during that election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Gov. Okpebholo, and the APC all urged the court to dismiss the appeal, which the Supreme Court ultimately did after reserving judgment on July 2.
Previously, the election tribunal had dismissed petitions filed by the PDP, the Action Alliance (AA), and the Accord Party (AP), ruling that they failed to provide solid evidence to challenge the results announced by INEC.
INEC had declared Okpebholo the winner of the September 21, 2024 election with 291,667 votes, defeating Ighodalo, who garnered 247,655 votes.
The PDP had alleged irregularities in 765 polling units, claiming result manipulation, over-voting, and improper use of BVAS machines.
They also contested the alleged failure of INEC to pre-record and serialize sensitive election materials.
However, the tribunal decided that their case lacked credible witness testimony and failed to meet legal standards of proof.
With this Supreme Court judgment, Monday Okpebholo’s election as Governor of Edo State is final.
