From Victor Osula, Abuja
The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Tuesday ended the brief reign of Senator Gabriel Suswan of the Peoples Democratic party and declared Emmanuel Udende of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the authentic winner of the February 25 National Assembly election for Benue North-East senatorial District.
A three-member panel of Justices led by Justice Abimbola Osarugue Obaseki Adejumo, in a unanimous judgement on Wednesday, set aside the judgment of the Benue State National/State Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, chaired by Ory Zik Ikeorha, which nullified the election of Udende and declared the one- time Benue State governor, Suswan, winner on September 10, 2023.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Udende approached the appellate court seeking nullification of the judgment.
Delivering ruling on Wednesday, the court faulted the judgment of the Benue State National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal.
The appellate court held that the tribunal wrongly evaluated the evidence that was presented before it by the parties in the matter to arrive at an erroneous judgment.
“The judgment of the tribunal delivered on 8/9/2023 is hereby set aside. The return of the Appellant as the winner of the Benue North East Senatorial election that was held on February 25 is hereby affirmed. Parties are to bear their respective cost,” the court held.
