Appeal Court Delivers Judgment on Suit Seeking Aiyedatiwa's Sack as Ondo Governor
- The appeal court, on Thursday, July 31, upheld the election of Lucky Aiyedatiwa of the APC in the November 16, 2024, governorship election in Ondo state
- The court dismissed the petitions filed by the opposition for not being strong enough
- Earlier, in June, Governor Aiyedatiwa won at the 2024 Ondo election petition tribunal
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics, elections, and governance in Nigeria.
Akure, Ondo state - The federal court of appeal, Akure, Ondo state, on Thursday, July 31, affirmed the election of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
Legit.ng recalls that the disputed Ondo governorship election took place on November 16, 2024.
Source: Twitter
Appeal court backs Aiyedatiwa's election
Channels Television noted the update from Akure on Thursday, July 31.
Per Premium Times, the court said that the appellants could not substantiate their allegations against the outcome of the election.
The court noted that the petitioners failed to prove that there were over-voting and electoral flaws in various polling units, wards, and local government areas where the election took place.
Aiyedatiwa, the incumbent All Progressives Congress (APC) governor, ran for election to a full term and won with over 366,000 votes, defeating former deputy governor Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who came second with 117,000 votes, and 15 other candidates.
Aiyedatiwa was the former deputy governor who became governor after the death of Governor Rotimi Akeredolu in December 2023.
Ajayi of the PDP was the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) gubernatorial candidate in the 2020 election.
The PDP had asked the court to sack Governor Aiyedatiwa. Now, the party is unsuccessful in its bid.
Legit.ng reports that the legal victory for Aiyedatiwa comes just one month after he also triumphed at the tribunal.
In June, the Ondo state governorship election petition tribunal dismissed the petitions filed by the PDP, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the Action Alliance (AA), and others.
The suits challenged the victory of Governor Aiyedatiwa in the 2024 election.
In a unanimous ruling, the tribunal held that the AA lacked the right to challenge the election outcome, having allegedly failed to present a candidate in the election.
In the over eight hours of judgment delivered on Wednesday, June 4, the tribunal held that the petitions against the victory of Aiyedatiwa and his deputy were baseless and were accordingly dismissed.
Source: Twitter
Aiyedatiwa hails appeal court's judgment
Reacting to the judgment, Aiyedatiwa described it as a welcome development.
The Ondo state No.1 citizen commended the appeal court justices "for painstakingly going through the cases and delivering detailed and unanimous judgments".
He said, as quoted by The Nation:
“I give glory to Almighty God who orchestrated this journey from the beginning and used the good people of Ondo state."
Aiyedatiwa pays tribute to Akeredolu
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Aiyedatiwa joined the entire nation in commemorating the first anniversary of the passage of his predecessor, Akeredolu.
The governor, in a statement he personally signed, reflected on Akeredolu's life and legacy, saying the former late ex-governor's contributions to Ondo state and Nigeria "will forever be etched in our hearts".
Source: Legit.ng
