The challenges submitted by the Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM) and Action Peoples Party (APP) challenging the election of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, have been dismissed by the Lagos State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.
Newsmen learns that once the patties themselves dropped the applications, Justice Arum Ashom, the chairman of the three-man Tribunal, dismissed the petitions.
It was reported that the petitioners revealed on Wednesday at the court’s sitting that their client had lost interest in pursuing the petitions through their attorneys, Henry Bello for the APM and Francis Ese for the APP.
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APM’s attorney, Bello, informed the Tribunal that the application for withdrawal was backed by two affidavits signed by Yusuf Mamman and was based on four grounds.
He said “Our candidate has lost interest in the petition and has proceeded to congratulate the second respondent. We urge the tribunal to strike out this petition.”
On the other side, the APP’s attorney also told the tribunal that Okey Nwosu, the party’s chairman, had ordered him to drop the petition.
However, this platform learned that John Baiyeshe and Abiodun Owonikoko, counsels to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), respectively, had not raised any objections to the application.
Likewise, Ayuba Kaw, the attorney for the Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat, did not object to the application.
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In his ruling, Justice Ashom held that “The sum effect of what the petitioners said is that the petition is withdrawn. The respondents have filed an affidavit of non-collusion and did not object.
“Considering the level at which the petition is and that pleadings have been closed, we order that the petition be dismissed.”
It should be recalled that Sanwo-Olu received 762,134 votes, beating out Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour of the Labour Party, who received 312,329 votes, and Jide Adediran of the PDP, who finished third with 62,449 votes.
According to the results released by INEC, Funmilayo Kupoluyi, a candidate for the APM, received a score of 884, while Abiola Adeyemi, a candidate for the APP, received a score of 259.
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The parties had stated in their individual petitions that Sanwo-Olu and his deputy lacked the necessary qualifications to run in the election and that INEC had violated the Electoral Act’s and the 1999 Constitution’s requirements.
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