On Tuesday, Obafemi Hamzat, the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, arrived at the Court of Appeal in the Lagos Division. He was present for the hearing of appeals that challenge the judgment of the Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which confirmed Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s re-election.The Election Petitions Tribunal, on September 25, 2023, upheld the re-election of Sanwo-Olu and his deputy as the duly elected governor of the state
In a unanimous decision, the three-man panel dismissed the two petitions filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its governorship candidate Olajide Adediran, as well as the petition by the Labour Party and its governorship candidate, Rhodes-Vivour.Regarding the PDP’s petition, the tribunal, with Justice Mikail Abdullahi reading the judgment on behalf of the panel, held that the petition lacked merit and dismissed it accordingly.“I affirm the election and return of Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu as the duly elected governor of Lagos State.
The tribunal considered whether it had the competence and jurisdiction to hear the petition. Justice Abdullahi confirmed this and stated that the issue had already been resolved during the preliminary objection stage.
The second issue for the tribunal to determine was whether Sanwo-Olu and his deputy Obafemi Hamzat were validly nominated by the All Progressives Congress, their party, to contest the elections.
The tribunal referenced relevant provisions of the Constitution and the Electoral Act, as well as previous cases, which established that this was a pre-election matter unrelated to the conduct of the challenged polls.
The tribunal also concluded that the petitioners were not members of the 4th respondent, the APC, and therefore lacked the standing to challenge the party’s primary that resulted in the nomination of both candidates
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