By Austin Ogwuda
Ngozi Okolie files appeal seeking to upturn Election Tribunal Judgment
Member representing Aniocha/ Oshimili Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, Rt. Hon Ngozi Okolie has filed a Nine- Ground appeal seeking to quash the recent judgment of the Election Petitions Tribunal, nullifying his election.
Chike Onyemenam, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria SAN leading counsel to Ngozi Okolie is seeking the following reliefs:
1. “An order setting aside the judgment of the tribunal and in its place, an order dismissing the petition before the lower tribunal for failure of the petitioners (1st and 2nd Respondents herein) to make out a prima facie case on same and for consequently failing to establish the Grounds for presenting same and facts pleaded in support of the said Grounds as required by Law.
2. “An order restoring the Declaration and Return of the Appellant by INEC at the Polls as the Winner of the Election and duly elected Member of the House of Representatives for Aniocha Oshimili Federal Constituency having scored the majority of lawful votes cast at the Election”.
Ground 7 of the appeal stated that “the Chairman and Members of the Tribunal erred in Law by holding that the original INEC nomination Form EC9 tendered by Labour Party (2nd Respondent at the Tribunal) said to be uploaded to INEC electronically, which INEC admitted that it consequently received and published the name of the Appellant as the Labour Party candidate for the election (in September 2022) over six months before the election was inadmissible to prove that Labour Party forwarded the name of the Appellant as its candidate to INEC for the election because the Certified True Copy of the Uploaded INEC Form EC9 is what ought to have been tendered and proceeded to hold that Labour Party did not forward the name of the Appellant as its candidate to INEC for the election, hence Labour Party did not sponsor the Appellant and proceeded to hold that the Appellant was not qualified to contest the election thereby occasioning a gross miscarriage of justice on the Appellant”.
Ground 9 of the appeal stated that “the Judgment is against the weight of Evidence”.
Ngozi Okolie is the Appellant with Elumelu Ndudi Godwin, People’s Democratic Party PDP,
Independent National Electoral Commission INEC and Labour Party, LP as Respondents.
The appeal in the opening paragraph stated “Take Notice that the Appellant being dissatisfied with the judgment of the National Assembly/Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal sitting at Asaba, Delta State in petition no EPT/DL/HR/06/2023 between Elumelu Ndudi Godwin & Another vs INEC and 2 Others, Coram Hon Justice A. Z Mussa, Honourable Justice C.K. Nwankwo and Chief Magistrate K.M.
Ibrahim delivered on Monday the 24th of July 2023, doth hereby appeal to the Court of Appeal upon the grounds set out in paragraph 3 hereunder and will at the hearing of the appeal seek the Reliefs set out in paragraph 4.
The appeal was filed today 2nd August 2023
