The Plateau State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has ruled against the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal’s decision to award Mr. Simon Lalong the Senate seat for Plateau South.
While briefing reporters on Tuesday in Jos, the company’s chairman, Mr. Chris Hassan, vehemently disagreed with the verdict.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Monday, the tribunal chairman, Justice M. B. Tukur, announced that Lalong had won the National Assembly elections held on February 25.
It also declared Fom Dalyop of the Labour Party (LP), who came in second, the winner of the Riyom/Barkin Ladi Federal Constituency, therefore nullifying the election of Mr Peter Gyendeng.
The two had gone to the tribunal to contest the election of PDP candidates Napoleon Bali and Gyendeng to the Senate and the House of Representatives.
The petitioners argued that they were improperly nominated because the PDP lacked organization when they emerged as candidates, and the tribunal agreed.
While rejecting the verdict, Hassan insisted that the Judges’ conclusions did not do justice.
“The PDP watched with shock and apprehension as the Senate election for Plateau South and the House election for Barkin Ladi/Riyom Federal Constituency were overturned.
We disagree with the entire verdict since it does not adhere to the law or the will of the majority of voters as freely expressed in the election.
The verdict “was an electoral robbery that is unacceptable to the people of Plateau” since it “is contrary to the will of the people of the constituencies which was freely expressed via the votes we got in the election,” he said.
Hassan said that the panel erred by basing its decision in favor of the petitioners on disputes inside the PDP.
He said his party had a new congress after Justice S.P. Gang’s ruling and insisted that the new congress resulted in “a solid and valid structure” for the party.
He continued by saying the tribunal’s ruling was completely unacceptable and lacked any semblance of fairness.
The Chairman of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal has stated that the recent consolidated judgements are a detour from the pure will and choices of the people.
With a new congress held in September 2021 under the watchful eye of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the PDP had complied with Justice S. P. Gang’s ruling.
The state executive of the Party was upheld as legitimately elected thanks to a ruling by Justice D. V. Agishi of the Federal High Court sitting in Jos in the matter of Augustine Timkuk versus PDP, which affirmed the legitimacy of the aforementioned congress.
On 11 February 2023, the Court of Appeal in Jos, comprised of Justices T. Y. Hassan, I. A. Andenyangtso, and O. O. Goodluck, unanimously affirmed the lower court’s judgement in favor of the PDP.
We remain confident that, by God’s special favor, the PDP’s valid and robust framework, through which our mandate was given, will stand.
The reason, he explained, was that a sister panel of the National and State Assembly Election Petition Tribunal had reached the same conclusion in seven separate verdicts.
Hassan, however, reassured the public that the party would not lose faith in the judicial system and would pursue legal action to protect its mandate.
He urged party members to do the right thing legally and vote for Bali and Gyendeng.
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