BREAKING NEWS : Ikpeazu wins as Court of appeal strikes out Otti's appeal

Posted by admin | 8 years ago | 2,827 times



The Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri, the Imo State capital, this morning struck out an appeal filed by the defeated governorship candidate of APGA in the Abia State governorship election, Mr Alex Otti, for extension of time to call up additional witnesses.

Dr Alex Otti had approached the appeal court to request for extension of time to call more witnesses at the governorship election petition tribunal sitting at Umuahia to enable him prove his case. But in a critical ruling delivered this morning at Owerri, the appeal court upheld the decision of the tribunal to close the case of the appellant based on pre-trial agreements reached by all the parties.

Observers believe that this ruling has effectively nailed the coffin of the APGA candidate as most of his twenty witnesses at the tribunal were discredited by the Okezie team. INEC also led evidence in support of candidate Okezie at the tribunal. It will be recalled that while Otti called 20 witnesses, mostly APGA agents, to prove his allegation of no election in 4 LGAs, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu presented 27 witnesses (mostly voters) to prove that elections actually held. His position was supported by INEC and PDP.

Abia Governorship election tribunal is expected to accept final addresses by the parties to the matter on the 14th of October and subsequently fix a date for ruling.


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