From Yakubu Busari,Jos
The National /State Houses of Assembly Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Jos Division , Plateau State, on Tuesday, dismissed the petition filed by the Young People Party ,(YPP) challenging the victory of Peoples Democratic Party’s Hon. Beni Butmak Lar in the February 25, 2023 general elections .
A three-member panel of the court led by Justice Mohammed Tukur dismissed the case after the petitioner’s lawyer, Micah Adaji , announced the withdrawal of the petition earlier filed .
Counsel for the respondents , Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, H.N.Ugwaike, the 2nd respondent, S.Y.Tsok and the 3rd respondent all didn’t object to the application seeking the order of the tribunal to strike out or dismissed it .
They said it was the end of the petition brought by YPP against the emergence of the Federal House of Representatives of Langtang North and South during the election.
They added, “We have responded to the petition, only for us to come on Monday to discovered that the petitioner was conspicuously absence in court and filed for the dismissal of the suit No,EPT/PL/HR/11 /23.
According to J.C.Lerai, Counsel to the petitioner ,we applied for withdrawal of the counter affidavit in response to the notice of P.O of the petitioner first respondent INEC which was filed on 16/06/2023 following the affidavit of of the secretary of the court .
He pleaded that he was not in court when such application was mentioned, that he came into Jos on Tuesday morning and rushed to the tribunal and drafted the withdrawal notice which had been served to the secretary .
The lawyer prayed the tribunal to stand down for few hours to enable him proceed with the letter of withdrawal and then found out that the party and the candidates claimed that they have looked at the petition again and they are not sure that they will succeed.
Plateau chapter of YPP said that,
“ We are convinced that it was when they saw our response to the petition that they made up their minds on the non-availability of the petition because the petition on 10 grounds and that communicated what happened on 25th February .”
The respondents’ said before the ruling was read that the Electoral Act should be amended to create a threshold for candidates or political parties that would file petitions before the election tribunal must have scored at least a quarter of all the total votes cast during the conduct of the poll.
Also speaking, the petitioner’s counsel said, “The panel dismissed our petition based on our application for withdrawal.”
However, the tribunal awarded no costs against YPP but reiterated that each party should bear their own cost
