The victory of Prince Abayomi Akinruntan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the April 11, 2015, House of Assembly election in the Ilaje Constituency 1 of Ondo state has been upheld by the Election Petition Tribunal.
The three-man tribunal led by Justice Obojor Ogar, sitting in Akure, the state capital, dismissed the petition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Leke Akingboye on Thursday, October 22, This Day reports.
The APC candidate had approached the court to challenge the result of the assembly’s election won by Akinruntan on the grounds of malpractice and non-compliance with the Electoral Act.
According to the tribunal, the petition lacked merit and Akingboye failed to substantially prove that the victory of the PDP lawmaker was marred by irregularities.
The tribunal also ruled that the APC candidate failed to tender admissible documentary and oral evidence to consolidate his claims.
Another allegation by the APC candidate that Akinruntan was a Labour Party member at the time he was given the PDP ticket to contest the election was dismissed by the tribunal.
In his reaction, Akinruntan, who is the son of the Olugbo of Ugboland in Ilaje local government area of the state, Oba Obateru Akinruntan, described the judgment as a victory for democracy.
However, Akingboye’s counsel, Titiloye Charles, vowed to challenge the judgment, saying he was not satisfied with the tribunal’s verdict.
There are still petitions pending across the country as some who lost in the 2015 elections have been challenging the victory of their opponents.
On October 20, Vincent Bulus, a lawmaker belonging to the PDP was sacked and barred for life from contesting elections by the National Assembly and State House of Assembly Elections Petitions Tribunal sitting in Jos, the Plateau state capital.
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