The Lagos State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal led by Justice Arum Ashom is scheduled to announce its judgment today, September 25. This announcement comes in response to the petitions lodged by the governorship candidates of the Labour Party (LP), Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) contender, Olajide Adediran, also known as Jandor. These petitions challenge the validity of Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s victory in the March 18, 2023 governorship election in Lagos.
Rhodes-Vivour and Jandor have both contested the return and declaration of Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat, who ran under the All Progressives Congress (APC) banner, as the winners of the Lagos State governorship election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
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Rhodes-Vivour, in his petition filed on April 9, 2023, claimed that Sanwo-Olu was ineligible to participate in the election. He argued that the APC candidate’s victory was compromised due to corrupt practices and violations of the Electoral Act 2022 and the Nigerian Constitution. According to Rhodes-Vivour, the second respondent (Sanwo-Olu) did not secure the majority of lawful votes.
On the other hand, Adediran contended in his petition that neither Sanwo-Olu nor his deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, were qualified to run in the election. He also challenged the eligibility of Rhodes-Vivour, the LP candidate who was declared the first runner-up. Adediran called on the tribunal to nullify the votes cast for both Sanwo-Olu and Rhodes-Vivour and declare himself the rightful winner.
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It’s worth noting that on August 12, all parties involved presented their final written arguments before the Tribunal. As anticipation mounts, the Lagos State deputy governor has already arrived at the court, and now everyone awaits the tribunal’s judgment.
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