The Bayelsa State governorship election was today nullified by the election petition tribunal.
The tribunal has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to order fresh elections within 14 days.
The nullification follows the election petition filed by the Advanced Nigeria Democratic Party (ANDP). ANDP challenged the victory of Governor Duoye Diri in the November 19 governorship election.
The party insists it was unlawfully excluded from the election and called for justice.
A 3-man panel sat and arrived at a 2 to 1 majority judgement to the effect that INEC has no statutory power to disqualify any candidate from participating in an election.
INEC had dropped the ANDP on the grounds that the Deputy Governorship Candidate was only 34 years old at the time of his nomination and therefore, did not qualify to contest the election.
The party told the presiding judge that the nominated deputy governorship candidate was substituted with David Esinkuma within the allowed time frame.
Even if the Chairman of the tribunal dismissed the petition on technical grounds, Presiding Justice Yunusa Musa, in his ruling averred that indeed INEC had no power to disqualify any candidate. He therefore ruled in favour of ANDP, and nullified the election describing the action of as illegal.
Justice Musa added that only a court has the power to to disqualify political candidates in an election and that the petition was filed within the stipulated 21 days.
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