The Kogi Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja has announced that it will deliver judgment on May 27 in the petition filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its governorship candidate, Murtala Ajaka, challenging the election victory of Governor Usman Ododo.
The tribunal, presided over by Justice Ado Birnin-Kudu, fixed the date after the parties adopted their final written addresses on May 13. The petition was filed by Ajaka, who lost the November 11, 2023, governorship election to Ododo of the All Progressive Congress (APC).
In their final submissions, INEC, Ododo, and the APC, through their lawyers, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, Joseph Daudu, SAN, and Emmanuel Ukala, SAN, respectively, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lacking merit and being incompetent. They argued that the petition was filed out of time and that the allegations of forgery and over-voting were not substantiated.
However, Ajaka’s lawyer, Pius Akubo, SAN, urged the tribunal to uphold the petition, arguing that it was filed within time and that the respondents’ submissions should be discountenanced.
The tribunal’s judgment on May 27 will bring an end to the legal battle over the Kogi governorship election.