The Abia State Election Petition Tribunal, convened in Umuahia, the state capital, has held off on delivering its verdict in a legal battle brought forth by Hon Otuwe Oji Kalu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the recently concluded state assembly election. Kalu contested the declaration of Hon Mandela Obasi, the flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as the lawmaker-elect for Ohafia North Constituency by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Following the election on March 19, 2023, INEC declared Obasi as the winner, citing that he had garnered the highest number of votes. Kalu secured the second position, while the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Okocha Uchenna Onuoha, finished third.
Dissatisfied with the election results, the APC candidate lodged a petition with the election tribunal, seeking various reliefs, including being declared as the rightful victor of the election. He alleged that agents of opposing parties and certain INEC ad-hoc staff had colluded and compromised the electoral process in favor of the PDP.
In the preceding stages of the legal proceedings, the Abia Election Petition Tribunal in Umuahia reviewed the final written arguments presented by both parties involved in the case. Mr. Anaga Kalu Anaga, Esq, the counsel representing the petitioner, urged the three-member tribunal panel to rule in favor of the APC, asserting that the plaintiff’s claims of result tampering and interference with disgruntled electoral officers aimed to thwart the will of the electorate.
On the other side, Mr. Chiedozie Ogunji, Esq, the lead lawyer representing the PDP candidate, addressed the state election petition tribunal. He argued that the petitioner had failed to substantiate allegations of result manipulation in the recently conducted election and requested the court to dismiss the APC candidate’s petition for lack of merit.
The tribunal has not yet specified a date for delivering its judgment on this post-election dispute, and this information will be communicated to the concerned parties in due course.
