The 2024 Edo Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal saw a heated disagreement on Wednesday as the All Progressives Congress (APC) called for the dismissal of the petition filed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), which challenged Governor Monday Okpebholo’s victory.
During a pre-hearing session in Benin, APC counsel Ferdinand Orbih, SAN, argued that the PDP’s petition was flawed and should be dismissed.
He claimed it had not been filed in accordance with legal requirements and asserted that the tribunal lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.
Orbih supported his argument with a motion dated November 30 and a seven-paragraph affidavit.
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In response, PDP counsel Ken Mozia, SAN, refuted the APC’s position, urging the tribunal to reject the motion for dismissal. Mozia emphasized that the petitioners had filed a reply and counter-affidavit opposing the motion.
The tribunal’s chairman, Justice Wilfred Kpochi, reserved judgment on the motion, with a ruling expected on the final day of the hearing.
“I have heard the arguments from both counsels, including the APC’s call for a ruling on its motion to dismiss the petition. The ruling will be delivered on the final day,” Justice Kpochi said.
In a subsequent motion, the APC sought to strike out certain paragraphs from the PDP’s petition.
Orbih argued that the tribunal should first address this motion before moving on to the main petition.
However, counsel for the PDP opposed the application, deeming it without merit and urging the tribunal to dismiss it.
Justice Kpochi emphasized that all preliminary motions would be ruled upon together with the final judgment.
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Earlier, the PDP had filed four motions seeking to remove specific paragraphs from the responses submitted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the APC, and Okpebholo to its petition.
The tribunal adjourned the proceedings until Saturday, giving the parties time to file a joint proposal to guide subsequent hearings.
This development paves the way for further legal maneuvers ahead of the substantive hearing in the PDP’s challenge to Okpebholo’s declaration as the winner of the 21 September election.
INEC had declared Okpebholo the winner with 291,667 votes, defeating the PDP’s Asue Ighodalo, who received 247,274 votes, and the Labour Party’s Olumide Akpata, who garnered 22,763 votes.
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