BREAKING: Fubara Defeats Tonye-Cole As Supreme Court Declares Him Rivers Governor

The Supreme Court has thrown out the appeal filed by Patrick Tonye-Cole of the All Progressives Congress (APC), challenging the election victory of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara.

The apex court said the appeal was grossly lacking in merit.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Fubara winner with 302,614 votes while Tonye-Cole had about 95,000 votes.

THE WHISTLER recalls that the Court of Appeal sitting in Lagos State had affirmed Fubara’s victory, saying he was duly sponsored by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Tonye-Cole had maintained that as of the March 18 governorship election, Fubara did not resign as Rivers State Accountant General contrary to relevant laws of the land.

But the appeal court dismissed the case and aligned with the Rivers State Tribunal which described Cole’s petition as lacking in merit and failing to prove that Fubara was not qualified to contest.

The tribunal also observed that the Rivers APC faction that sponsored Cole had withdrawn the petition against Fubara’s victory.

Dissatisfied with the concurrent verdicts of the court below, the APC candidate approached the apex court for redress.

Tonye-Cole’s lawyer, Jibril Okutepa, insisted that Fubara contravened electoral laws based on his previous arguments at the court below.

He urged the five-member panel of the apex court chaired by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun to set aside the judgements of the lower courts and sack Fubara over the appellate court’s grave miscarriage of justice.

On their part, the governor’s legal team led by Emmanuel Ukala, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged the apex court to uphold his client’s election in line with the concurrent findings of the courts below.

Reading out the lead judgement on Thursday, Justice Ibrahim Mohammed Saulawa said the appellant was unable to discharge the burden of proof required of him to prove his case of non-compliance to the Electoral Act and corrupt practices.

“I have come to the inevitable conclusion that this appeal is grossly lacking in merit.

“The appeal is accordingly dismissed,” the judge held in a unanimous decision.

THE WHISTLER reports that the Allied People’s Movement’s (APM) counsel, Innocent Kere, voluntarily withdrew the party’s case against Fubara.

As a result, it was dismissed by the apex court.