Nwosu rejects Ihedioha’s victory at election tribunal

The Action Alliance (AA) governorship candidate in the March 9 elections in Imo State, Uche Nwosu, has rejected Saturday’s Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal ruling that upheld the election of Governor Emeka Ihedioha, describing it as an “unpopular and unacceptable judgement.”

He said despite his confidence in the judiciary, he was not in agreement with the judgement.

The Imo tribunal sitting at the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Jabi, had dismissed the petitions filed by Senators Ifeanyi Araraume of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Hope Uzodinma of All Progressives Congress (APC) and Nwosu, seeking to upturn the election of Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as Imo governor.

Nwosu’s director of Media and Publicity, Jones Onwuasoanya, stated at the weekend that his principal had resolved to appeal against the judgement.

“While we retain our confidence in the judiciary and their ability to dispense justice, we have reasons to believe that the judges who served on the Imo State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal were either misled or were distracted from paying adequate attention to the overwhelming evidence presented to them by our lawyers, and the irrefutable testimonies of our witnesses; hence, the error-ridden verdict they passed earlier today,” he stated on Saturday.

Similarly, APGA disputed the declaration of Ihedioha as the winner of the election.

Briefing the media yesterday in Abuja, chairman of APGA in Imo, Henry Okafor, said the judgement was a travesty of justice, which the party was determined to challenge.

He added that the judgement was a mockery of the nation’s judiciary and democracy, wondering why the judges overlooked the evidence presented for the cancellation of the election.

Meanwhile, Governor Ihedioha has accused the immediate past governor, Rochas Okorocha, of using the state’s N11.2 billion to build a police headquarters and hospitals that were donated to the military.

In a statement at the weekend entitled ‘How Rochas robbed Imo to pay Abuja’, Special Assistant to the Governor on Research, Ogu Bundu Nwadike, said Imo people were denied the funds, which could have impacted on them in the most desired areas of need.

He noted Okorocha’s lamentation that Imo didn’t benefit anything from the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.

“The ex-governor tearfully relayed how despite Imo being an APC state got no special benefit from the Federal Government, after using Imo money to the tune of N 11.2 billion to build a house for the Federal Government as headquarters of the Nigeria Police Force.