The National Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia, Abia State, has dismissed a petition filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Chinedum Orji, against the Labour Party’s Chief Obi Aguocha, who represents the Ikwuano/Umuahia North/South Federal Constituency. The tribunal’s decision came after the Independent National Electoral Commission declared Aguocha the winner of the February 25, 2023, House of Representatives election.
Orji, the former Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly and son of former governor Theodore Orji, challenged the election results, claiming that Aguocha was not properly nominated as the Labour Party candidate and therefore was unqualified to contest. He also argued that Aguocha contested and lost in the PDP primary before joining the LP, and that there was overvoting in some polling units that favored his opponent.
However, the tribunal, led by Justice Abubakar Kutigi, ruled that the issue of a political party’s membership is a pre-election matter and outside the tribunal’s jurisdiction. The tribunal also held that the petitioner failed to prove that Aguocha was not duly nominated by the LP, as the candidate’s selection is an internal party affair. Additionally, the allegation of overvoting was dismissed due to a lack of substantial evidence.
The tribunal ultimately dismissed the petition for lacking in merit. The petitioner’s counsel stated that they would review the judgment and decide on their next course of action, while Aguocha’s counsel called on the petitioner to accept the judgment in good faith and support his client.