The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the re-election of Senator Douye Diri as the Governor of Bayelsa State, dismissing the appeal brought by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Timipre Sylva.
The apex court’s ruling marks the end of a protracted legal battle that began following the November 11, 2023, gubernatorial election.
The court, in a unanimous decision, reaffirmed the decisions of both the Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which had earlier dismissed the petitions challenging Diri’s victory.
The lead judgment was delivered by Justice Garba Lawal, who stated that the appeal by Sylva and the APC was not only without merit but also constituted a gross abuse of the court process.
This decision is seen as a significant legal victory for Governor Diri and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), solidifying their position in Bayelsa State.
The November 11, 2023, gubernatorial election in Bayelsa State was closely contested, with Diri, the incumbent governor, securing a second term in office.
However, the election was immediately challenged by Timipre Sylva, a former governor of the state and the APC’s candidate. Sylva and his party alleged widespread irregularities, including over-voting and non-compliance with the Electoral Act, which they argued compromised the election’s outcome.
The Election Petition Tribunal, in its ruling on May 27, 2024, dismissed Sylva’s petition for lacking credible evidence.
The tribunal, led by Justice Adekunle Adeleye, struck out several paragraphs of the petitioners’ reply as incompetent, noting that the evidence provided failed to substantiate the claims of electoral malpractice.
The tribunal also pointed out that the law requires an election petition to be filed within 21 days of the election result being declared, a stipulation that was not adhered to by the petitioners.
Following the tribunal’s decision, Sylva and the APC took their case to the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
However, on July 18, 2024, the appellate court, in a unanimous judgment delivered by a three-member panel led by Justice James Abundaga, upheld the tribunal’s decision.
The Court of Appeal concluded that the petitioners had not provided sufficient evidence to overturn the election results and dismissed the appeal as lacking merit.
In a related development, the Supreme Court also affirmed the victory of Usman Ododo of the APC in the November 11, 2023, governorship election in Kogi State.
The apex court dismissed separate appeals filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its candidate, Muritala Ajaka, as well as the Action Alliance (AA) and its candidate, Olayinka Braimoh, challenging the legitimacy of Ododo’s win.
Justice Sadiq Umar, who delivered the lead judgment, noted that the appeals were without merit.
He particularly pointed out that the notice of appeal filed by AA and Braimoh was incompetent, as it was submitted outside the 14-day period allowed by law for such filings.
The court also imposed a cost of N5 million against the appellants in favor of the respondents, underscoring the court’s stance on the importance of adhering to legal timelines and procedures.
The Kogi State gubernatorial election, held on the same day as the Bayelsa election, saw Ododo, the APC candidate, emerge victorious.
The election, however, was marred by allegations of irregularities, including claims of over-voting and non-compliance with electoral laws.
Dissatisfied with the election results, Ajaka and the SDP, along with Braimoh and the AA, filed petitions seeking to annul the election.
The Kogi State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which initially heard the case, dismissed the petitions on May 27, 2024.
The tribunal, headed by Justice Ado Birnin-Kudu, found that the petitioners failed to provide credible evidence to support their allegations.
The tribunal also ruled that issues such as the alleged forgery of documents submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were pre-election matters that should have been addressed by the Federal High Court before the election took place.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja, in a ruling on July 11, 2024, upheld the tribunal’s decision. Justice Onyekachi Otisi, delivering the lead judgment, agreed with the tribunal that the petitioners had not met the legal burden of proof required to overturn the election results.
The appellate court’s ruling was a further blow to the opposition’s efforts to challenge Ododo’s victory.
