Patrick v. INEC & Ors (2024)
Citation: Patrick v. INEC & Ors (2024) SC/CV/1193/2023
Court: Supreme Court of Nigeria
Date Delivered: 25 January 2024
Area of Law: Electoral Law, Constitutional Law
Facts
The appellant, Cole Tonye Patrick, challenged the declaration of Sir Siminalayi Fubara as the duly elected Governor of Rivers State following the 18 March 2023 governorship election. The petition alleged that the declared winner was not qualified to contest the election and that there were substantial violations of the Electoral Act, 2022.
The Election Petition Tribunal dismissed the petition. The Court of Appeal affirmed the dismissal, prompting a further appeal to the Supreme Court.
Issues for Determination
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Whether the respondent was constitutionally qualified to contest the election.
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Whether the alleged non-compliance with the Electoral Act substantially affected the outcome of the election.
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Whether issues previously determined could be re-litigated.
Decision
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal in its entirety and affirmed the judgments of the lower courts.
Ratio Decidendi
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A petitioner alleging non-qualification bears the strict burden of proof and must establish the allegation with credible and admissible evidence.
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Issues already determined by a competent court are caught by the doctrine of res judicata and cannot be reopened.
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Allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act must show that the breach substantially affected the result of the election.
Significance
This decision reinforces the Supreme Court’s consistent position that election petitions are evidence-driven proceedings and that courts will not set aside election results on speculation or technical complaints.
