Francis Nwifuru
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has disclosed plans to appeal the victory of Gov Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State.
Recall that the Ebonyi State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, affirmed the election of Nwifuru.
The Tribunal dismissed the petitions of the PDP and its governorship candidate, Ifeanyi Odii and that of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and its governorship candidate, Bernard Odoh.
Both the PDP and APGA had dragged Nwifuru, who was declared winner of the March 18 governorship polls in the state, to court to challenge his victory.
According to the PDP and its candidate, Nwifuru, who contested on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was at the time of the election not qualified to contest on the platform of the APC because he was still a member of the PDP.
However, the APC in the state insisted that Nwifuru resigned from the PDP while serving as Speaker of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, and defected to the APC before its primary election.
The Tribunal’s three-member panel headed by Justice Lekan Ogunmoye, however, held that there was no evidence from the petitioner to prove there was non-compliance with the Electoral Act in the election.
The tribunal also held that the petitioners did not prove that Nwifuru did not score the majority of lawful votes in the election.
However, the PDP has vowed that it will appeal the tribunal’s judgement while reassuring members that it will regain its mandate.
The PDP also appealed to its supporters in the state to remain calm and peaceful, as the party makes further moves to reclaim its mandate.