Apex Court -- Why Isiaka’s petition failed

The Supreme Court on Friday explained why it
dismissed the appeal filed by the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in last
governorship election in Ogun State,
Adegboyega Isiaka.
The apex court held that Isiaka failed to prove
the allegations that the conduct of the
election won by the All Progressives Congress
(APC) candidate, Ibikunle Amosun, did not
comply with the Electoral Act and was marred
by malpractices.
Justice Kumai Akaahs, who read the led
judgment of a seven-man panel headed by the
Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud
Mohammed, held that the tribunal and the
Court of Appeal, Ibadan, were right to upheld
Amosu’s election.
Justice Akaah said the PDP candidate was
unable to give sufficient evidence to
substantiate his allegation that elections in
nine local government areas in the state – Ifo,
Abeokuta-North, Abeokuta South, Odeda,
Ewekoro, Obafemi-Owode, Ado/Odo/Ota,
Sagamu and Remo- North were marred by
irregularities, malpractices and non-
compliance with election guidelines.
He held that the appeal was bound to fail
because of inconsistencies in the report of a
team that inspected electoral materials
tendered by the appellants’ star witness and
the inadmissibility of the said document.
The judge further held that to prove the
improper conduct of the election in nine local
government areas which had 1,672 polling
units, the appellants only called nine
witnesses out whom only two were
eyewitnesses to what transpired in only about
12 polling units.