Appeal Court Affirms Sack Of Enugu Reps Member

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The National/State Assembly Appeal Court, sitting in Enugu, on Wednesday October 9, 2024, affirmed the ruling of an Election Petition Tribunal sacking the member representing the Igboeze/Udenu Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, Hon Simon Atigwe.

The Source reports that the Tribunal sitting in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State Capital, had on September 14, 2024, in a  unanimous ruling, nullified the election of Atigwe on the platform of the Peoples Democratic PDP.

The tribunal had declared void about 2000 from the total votes credited to Hon Atigwe in the  2023 National Assembly election, held same day as the Presidential Election.

The Panel held that the 2000 votes were wrongfully added to Hon. Atigwe by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC.

The Tribunal further held that Labour Party’s  Dennis Agbo, having polled a total of 23,221 as against Atigwe’s 21,863, was the duly elected candidate.

The Tribunal subsequently ordered the INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return earlier issued to Atigwe and give same to Hon. Agbo of the LP.

But dissatisfied with the Tribunal’s verdict, Hon Atigwe approached the Appeal court seeking a reversal.

The three-man Appeal Court presided over by  Hon Justice Ekanem, also, unanimously held that LP’s Agbo was the winner of the election.

It consequently dismissed the appeal  filed  by PDP’s Atigwe as lacking in merit.

This marks the end of Atigwe’s case and stay in the 10th National Assembly.