THE Court of Appeal Abuja has upheld the election of Joshua, the son of Professor Jerry Gana of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Lavun/Mokwa/Edati Federal Constituency Niger State, in the House of Representatives.
The appellate court set aside an earlier judgment of the National and State Houses of Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, delivered on September 11, which nullified Gana’s election.
The tribunal had in its judgment, voided the certificate of return issued to Gana by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and ordered supplementary elections in the Lavun/Mokwa/Edati Federal Constituency.
In a unanimous decision,a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal upheld the argument by the lawyer to Gana, Akinlolu Kehinde, that the tribunal was wrong to have held in favour of the petitions of Abdullahi Usman Gbatamagi and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Appellate court held that Gbatamagi and the APC did not comply with the mandatory provisions of Paragraph 4 (5) of the 1st Schedule to the Electoral Act 2022 when they failed to file their witness written statement on oath within the time stipulated for filing the petition.
It added that the evidence of their first witness and all documents tendered by him, relied on by the tribunal in giving judgment in favour of the 1st and 2nd (Usman and the APC), were inadmissible.
Gana is the Deputy Chairman, of the House Committee on Power at the Federal House of Representatives.
The appellate court further held that the tribunal erred in law when it held that Gbatamagi and the APC adduced sufficient evidence in prove their petition.
The Court of Appeal held that the appeal filed by mister Gana, was meritorious and proceeded to allow it.
