On Friday, the Supreme Court affirmed the election victory of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State.
In a unanimous decision, a five-member panel of the apex court dismissed the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege. The appeal aimed to challenge the outcome of the governorship election held in Delta State on March 18, 2023.
Justice Inyang Okoro, delivering the lead judgment, held that the appeal lacked merit.
The apex court held that the APC and its candidate did not prove that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act 2023.
It dismissed Omo-Agege’s contention that some of the result sheets that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, relied upon to declare Oborevwori as the winner of the election, did not have serial numbers.
The court noted that even if the total number of INEC forms that the Appellants raised concerns about were eliminated, it would not impact the margin of lead favoring Oborevwori.
The court held that the Appellants did not meet the burden of proof required by the law to justify overturning both the Court of Appeal judgment and the decision of the Delta State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal.
Consequently, it dismissed the petition without cost.
Recall that INEC had declared Oborevwori of the PDP polled 360, 234 votes to win the governorship election ahead of Omo-Agege of the APC who secured 240, 229 votes.