Appeal Court Affirms Oyebanji As Ekiti Governor, Segun Oni Loses

The court of appeal on Tuesday affirmed the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the June 18, 2022, gubernatorial election, Biodun Oyebanji as the governor of Ekiti State.

The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Segun Oni had challenged the victory of Oyebanji in the election.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Oyebanji a winner for claiming the highest votes in the governorship election.

A three-member panel while delivering judgement on Tuesday held that the appeal filed by Oni lacks merit.

In the judgments delivered virtually via Zoom, Hamma Barka who read the lead judgment agreed with the judgment of the tribunal.

Oni had alleged that Monisade Afuye, now Ekiti deputy governor, presented fake WAEC results to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

On the allegation of certificate forgery against the deputy governor, Barka held that Oni ought to have called witnesses including a staff of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) to prove his allegations.

All other issues raised were resolved in favour of the respondents.

Having resolved all the issues against the appellant, the appeal was dismissed for lacking of merit.

The appellate court also awarded N200,000 cost against the appellant in favour of the fourth and fifth respondents.