In a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, the Supreme Court has upheld the election victory of Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State. The ruling, delivered on Thursday, dismissed an appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Mr. Tonye Cole, challenging the outcome of the governorship election held on March 18, 2023.
Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, delivering the lead judgment, stated that the court found no merit in Cole’s appeal and saw no reason to overturn the concurrent verdicts of the Court of Appeal and the Rivers State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, both of which upheld Fubara’s victory. The Supreme Court held that Cole failed to establish that the election was not conducted in compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.
It’s worth noting that the APC had withdrawn from the case against Governor Fubara during the proceedings at the Rivers State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal. Despite the party’s decision, Tonye Cole persisted in prosecuting his petition to its conclusion.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Fubara of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner with a total of 302,614 votes, defeating Tonye Cole of the APC who received 95,274 votes.
Cole’s petition alleged corrupt practices during the Rivers State governorship poll and argued that it was not conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act 2022. Additionally, he claimed that Fubara did not validly resign from his previous position as required by law before the election, alleging that Fubara continued to sign documents as the Accountant-General of Rivers State even after being nominated as the PDP candidate.
Both the tribunal and the Court of Appeal had previously dismissed Cole’s case for lack of merit. The Court of Appeal, in its verdict on November 28, 2023, affirmed the tribunal’s decision but disagreed with its stance that the petition was invalidated by the withdrawal of APC from the case. The appellate court clarified that APC’s withdrawal did not prohibit Cole from pursuing the appeal independently.
This Supreme Court decision marks the end of the legal battle over the Rivers State governorship election, reaffirming Governor Fubara’s victory.
