The Court of Appeal sitting in Kaduna has nullified the election of spokesman of the Senate, Senator Dayo Adeyeye.
The ruling was delivered by Justice Uzor Anyanwu on Wednesday.
The court also upheld the tribunal judgment declaring Peoples Democratic Party’s Senator Abiodun Olujimi winner of the Ekiti South Senatorial election held on February 23.
The Independent National Electoral Commission had declared Adeyeye, who ran on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress, winner of the National Assembly election.
Olujimi approached the elections petitions tribunal, seeking declaration that she had the highest number of votes in the election.
She urged the tribunal to nullify the APC candidate’s victory, claiming irregularities in the electoral process.
The tribunal subsequently nullified elections in some polling units and declared Olujimi winner.
All Progressives Congress and its candidate in the election, Dayo Adeyeye appealed the tribunal ruling at the appellate court.
Anyanwu upheld the tribunal ruling and also ordered INEC to issue a certificate of return to Olujimi.
READ ALSO: OMOYELE SOWORE FINALLY MEETS BAIL CONDITIONS
APC, PDP reacts…
Reacting to the judgment, the ruling All Progressive Congress and the People’s Democratic Party expressed mix reaction over the judgment.
While the opposition party commended the judiciary for upholding the victory of the party’s candidate, Olujimi described it as a travesty of justice.
The party said that the judgment of both the lower tribunal and the appeal court did not come as a surprise because the result declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission did not reflect the true vote cast.
But APC said the sack of the Senate Committee Chairman on Media and Public Affairs amounted to truncating the people’s wish.
In a statement by the PDP Publicity Secretary in the State, Mr Jackson Adebayo, the Party berated INEC for studiously colluded with the All Progressive Congress to steal the mandate which was given to Sen Olujimi and PDP at the poll without minding the Democratic consequences on the nation.
The Party, however, gave kudos to the judiciary for righting the wrong appropriately by declaring Sen Olujimi and PDP as the authentic winner of the National Assembly election.
“We congratulate all members of our Party in the State and particularly congratulate Sen Biodun Olujimi for her courage to fight the battle to a victorious logical conclusion.”
The Party urge all the leaders as well as members of the Party to see this victory as that of God, hence the need to cooperate to move the Party forward.
“We want to assure all our members that with the victory of Sen Olujimi there is a great future for the Party, what we just need is to walk in unison towards subsequent elections in the State.”
The APC Director of Media and Publicity, Elder Sam Oluwalana, Oluwalana urged the people not to be discouraged by the court judgment, saying that they should continue to support the APC in the state in its quest to turn around the mismanaged economy of the state by immediate past regime.
Oluwalana noted that the short period spent by Senator Adeyeye at the red chamber was indelible and remarkable for the people of Ekiti South and the state in general.
“We commend Prince Dayo Adeyeye, who was highly-revered by his colleagues in the Upper Chambers, for the exemplary leadership, which he exhibited within the short period he spent in the Senate. We are proud of his achievements during the period, as he was able to manage information outflow, without any scandal in the House”.
He, however, appealed to the people to go about their normal businesses rather than taking the laws into their hand over the judgment.
“We advise our supporters in the state not to be swayed by the judgment, but to rather remain steadfast with the state government, in its quest to make things better for the people of the state”, he added.
