Court of Appeal Nullifies Gabriel Suswam’s Election, Reinstates Emmanuel Udende.
In a unanimous decision by a three-member panel of justices, the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal nullified the election of Gabriel Suswam as the senator representing Benue’s North-East senatorial district.
The court found that Mr. Suswam was not the valid winner of the senatorial election held on February 25.
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The decision came after the Benue National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal had returned Mr. Suswam of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the Senate, overturning the victory of Emmanuel Udende of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Court of Appeal faulted the tribunal’s judgment, stating that it had wrongly evaluated the evidence presented by the parties involved and arrived at an erroneous conclusion that upheld Mr. Suswam’s petition challenging Mr. Udende’s election victory.
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As a result, the court set aside the tribunal’s judgment and affirmed the return of Mr. Udende as the winner of the Benue North-East senatorial election, held on February 25. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had initially declared Mr. Udende the winner after he polled 135,573 votes, defeating Mr. Suswam, who garnered 112,231 votes.
Not satisfied with the election outcome, Mr. Suswam had approached the tribunal, alleging over-voting, irregularities, alterations, and falsification of results. The tribunal found in favor of Mr. Suswam, but this decision has now been vacated by the Court of Appeal.
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This development could have significant implications for the representation of Benue’s North-East senatorial district in the Nigerian Senate.
