A’Ibom tribunal rules on relocation request June 24

                                 
The Akwa Ibom State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal which is currently sitting in Abuja has fixed June 24 for ruling on an application seeking the return of the tribunal to Uyo, the state capital.

The Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate in the April 11, 2015 governorship election, Udom Emmanuel, whose victory at the poll is being challenged at the tribunal, had through an application filed on June 7, 2015 prayed the tribunal to return to Uyo where it held its inaugural sitting before the decision to relocate it to Abuja.


Emmanuel’s victory at the poll is being challenged by the All Progressives Congress and its candidate in the election, Umana Umana.

Emmanuel, the PDP, the Independent National Electoral Commission, the Akwa Ibom State Resident Electoral Commissioner and the Nigeria Police Force are the five respondents to the petition.

The Justice Sadiq Umar-led three-man panel of the tribunal on Monday fixed June 25 for the ruling on the application for relocation after hearing lawyers to the parties to the petition.

While faulting the application, the petitioners’ lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), argued that the applicant’s reliance on an earlier decision of the Court of Appeal to the effect that a tribunal must only sit where the election was held was wrong .

He said the case relied upon by the applicants was decided in 2005 under the 2002 Electoral Act and before the constitution was amended.

Olanipekun, who argued that the motion was an abuse of court process and should be dismissed, drew the tribunals’ attention to a similar suit before the Federal High Court, Uyo, involving the PDP and which is also challenging the relocation of the tribunal to Abuja.

He noted that the suit marked: FHC/UY/CS/1107/2015 was filed on June 10, 2015 by Udoh Akpan and 25 others against the President of the Court of Appeal and four others.

Responding to the argument by the applicant’s lawyer, Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN) to the effect that the relocation was an administrative action, Olanipekun faulted the manner adopted by Emmanuel to challenge the relocation.