Supreme Court Uphold Sen. Diri’s Election As Duly Elected Bayelsa State Governor

By Akinwale Kasali

Senator Duoye Diri, Governor of Bayelsa State, can now stand at ease.

The Supreme Court has upheld his re-election as the duly elected Governor of the State.

The apex court  dismissed the appeal brought before it by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress APC, Timipre Sylva, a former Governor of the State, and his party.

The lead judgment delivered by Justice Garba Lawal, held that the appeal by Sylva and APC was not only lacking in merit but a gross abuse of court process.

The unanimous decision of the apex court upheld the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal and the Election Petition Tribunal.

The Court of Appeal in Abuja had, on July 18, affirmed the re-election victory of Governor Diri in the November 11, 2023 governorship poll.

The three-member panel of Justices led by Justice James Abundaga, in a unanimous judgment, held that the appeal filed by the appellants; Mr Timipre Sylva and the All Progressives Congress (APC), lacked merit.

The panel held that the tribunal was not in error when it struck several paragraphs of the petitioner’s reply against the Governor’s  election.

The Election Tribunal had, on May 27, dismissed the petition filed by Sylva and APC.

The three-member Tribunal, led by Justice Adekunle Adeleye dismissed the petition for lacking in merit.

In a unanimous decision, the tribunal held that the petitioners failed to adduce credible evidence to substantiate their allegations against the outcome of the State’s Governorship Poll.