Supreme Court Affirms Election Of Nwifuru As Ebonyi Governor

The Supreme Court has affirmed the election of Francis Nwifuru of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as Governor of Ebonyi State.

The apex court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal, Lagos, dismissing the appeal of Chukwuma Odii of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for lacking in merit.

Last November, the Court of Appeal in Lagos affirmed the election of Nwifuru as the duly elected governor of Ebonyi State in the March 18 governorship election.

The three-member panel presided over by Justice Jummai Sankey, in its unanimous decision, dismissed the appeal filed by Odii and upheld the earlier verdict of the tribunal but the PDP candidate approached the apex court to seek redress.

The panel also resolved all the five issues raised against the appellant and dismissed the appeal for lacking in merit.

Justice Sankey had held that the PDP and its candidate lacked the legal right to meddle in the internal affairs of the All Progressives Congress as it relates to the nomination of candidates.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared the Nwifuru as the winner of the March 18 poll in Ebonyi State.

Nwifuru polled 199,131 to defeat Ifeanyi Odii of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who scored 80,191 and the Ben Odo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) who got 52,189.