The Bayelsa Governorship Election Petition Tribunal has dismissed the petition filed by the All Progressives Congress, APC, and its candidate Timipre Sylva, against the reelection of Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State.
In a unanimous decision on Monday, a three-member tribunal led by Adekunle Adeleye, affirmed the re-election of Douye Diri as governor of the state and dismissed Sylva’s petition for lacking in merit.
The tribunal held that the petitioners failed to give credible evidence to substantiate their allegations against the outcome of the Bayelsa poll.
Consequently, it struck out all the additional evidence as well as statements on oath of some of the petitioners’ witnesses for being incompetent.
The tribunal held that the petitioners failed to file their additional proof of evidence within the 21 days allowed by law.
It held that the decision by Sylva and his party to file their additional proof of evidence and statement on oath of witnesses, long after they had filed the petition, was “tantamount to a surreptitious attempt to amend the case of the petitioners”.
The tribunal dismissed a allegations, including forged university degree and NYSC exemption certificates against Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, Bayelsa deputy governor.
It also noted that the petitioners sought contradictory reliefs by asking the court to declare them winners of the poll while also asking the court to nullify the same election, even without tendering any electoral material to show that the poll was marred by irregularities.
