The Supreme Court, on Wednesday, rejected an appeal by the Social Democratic Party and its governorship candidate, Dr Umar Ardo, challenging the victory of Ahmadu Fintiri as the governor of Adamawa State.
The appeal, marked SC/CV/1219/2023, was dismissed for lacking merit.
Despite SDP and Ardo securing 6,000 votes, they contested Fintiri’s declaration, who garnered over 430,000 votes in the March 18, 2023 election.
Their argument centered on the claim that the election did not comply substantially with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
During the court proceedings, the appellants’ counsel, Sylvester Imhanobe, failed to provide evidence of the alleged non-compliance. Consequently, the appellants withdrew their appeal, acknowledging its lack of merit.
Justice John Inyang Okoro, leading a 5-man panel, dismissed the appeal without imposing any costs on the appellants. The Supreme Court affirmed Fintiri’s election as valid and lawful, upholding his position as the Governor of Adamawa State.
Earlier, Ardo and SDP submitted a petition to the Adamawa Governorship Election Petition Tribunal seeking the annulment of Fintiri’s victory.
However, the tribunal, presided over by Theodora Uloho, dismissed the petition, deeming it incompetent and improperly filed.
