The Election Petitions? Tribunal sitting in Benin, Edo State, yesterday, upheld the election of the only female member of the Edo State House of Assembly, Elizabeth Ativie (ACN-Uhunmwonde), dismissing in the process the? petition of Mr Johnbull Asemota (PDP).
?
Asemota had filed a petition before the three-man tribunal urging it to, among other things,nullify the election of Ativie on the ground that the election of April 26 from which she emerged winner was fraught with irregularities.
?
The petitioner alleged that while there was electoral malpractice in the existing 10 wards that constitute Uhunmwode constituency, he claimed that 6,114 invalid votes cast were added to Ativie’s vote which assisted her to be returned by INEC as winner.
?
Delivering the unanimous judgment of the tribunal, Justice Olayinka Gbaja-Biamila said that the petitioner failed to prove the case of irregularity as pleaded in his petition.
?
Gbaja-Biamila also said that the tribunal refused to believe the evidence of the petitioner since all the agents, including his agents, signed the results sheet in compliance with the electoral act.
?
On the allegation of ballot box stuffing and thump printing of voter cards, the tribunal ruled that because the allegation was criminal in nature, the petitioner also failed? to prove beyond reasonable doubt the case so alleged.
?
He, therefore, ruled that the tribunal had no option than to uphold the election of Ativie as the candidate who polled the majority of votes in the April 26 election and dismissed Asemota’s petition for lack of merit.
?