Supreme Court Affirms Oborevwori’s Election As Delta Governor

The Supreme Court, on Friday, January 19, 2024 affirmed the election of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State.

In a unanimous decision, a five-member panel of the Supreme Court, dismissed an appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC), and its candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, challenging the outcome of the governorship election that was held on March 18, 2023 in the State.

The apex court in its judgement delivered by Justice Inyang Okoro, held that the appeal by the APC and Omo-Agege lacked merit.

The five Justices of the Supreme Court held that the APC and its candidate did not prove before the court that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.

It therefore dismissed Omo-Agege’s argument that some of the result sheets that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), relied upon to declare Oborevwori as the winner of the election, did not have serial numbers.

In the verdict of the apex Court; “Even if the total number of INEC forms that the Appellants complained about are removed, it would still not affect the margin of lead that was in Oborevwori’s favour.

“The Appellants failed to discharge the burden of proof placed on them by the law to warrant the setting aside of both the Court of Appeal judgement and the verdict of the Delta State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal,” it declared.

Accordingly, the Supreme Court dismissed the petition without cost.

INEC had declared that Oborevwori of the PDP polled 360, 234 votes to win the Delta State Governorship election against Omo-Agege of the APC who garnered 240, 229 votes.

But, not satisfied with the result, the former Deputy President of the Senate, Omo-Agege, approached the Election Petition Tribunal to nullify the outcome of the election.