On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld the election of Usman Ododo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the Kogi State governorship election held on November 11, 2023.
This decision came after the Court dismissed the appeal filed by Murtala Ajaka of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), who had challenged the election results.
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In a unanimous judgment, the Supreme Court confirmed the Court of Appeal’s decision from May 27, which had already affirmed Ododo’s election. The five-member panel found that Ajaka’s claims of substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act were unsubstantiated.
Additionally, the Court noted that allegations of age falsification and certificate forgery should have been addressed in the Federal High Court, which has jurisdiction over such pre-election issues.
The Supreme Court, therefore, dismissed Ajaka’s appeal as lacking merit. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had previously declared Ododo as the winner with 446,237 votes, defeating Ajaka, who received 259,052 votes.
