The National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal in Anambra State on Tuesday reserved judgment till a date to be announced in the petition challenging the election of Senator Andy Uba (PDP-Anambra South). This followed the adoption of the final addresses by parties in the matter before the three-man panel headed by Justice Nayai Aganaba in Awka. Ernest Ndukwe, the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, had filed the petition to challenge the declaration of Uba as the winner of the March 28 poll for Anambra South Senatorial Zone. Ndukwe is challenging the election on the grounds that Uba was not qualified to contest and that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act 2010. Adopting his final address, Arthur Obi-Okafor (SAN), the counsel to Uba, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lacking in merit as the petitioners failed to prove the allegation of non-qualification. Obi-Okafor also contended that the reliefs sought by the petitioners were incompatible with the petition. Also, the counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission, O.G. Adindu, said two motions had been filed seeking to strike out the offensive paragraphs of the petition and the petitioner’s reply. However, the counsel to Ndukwe, Nnuruka Udechukwu (SAN), had prayed the tribunal to allow the petition, contending that the argument on inconsistent pleadings in the petition were false. Udechukwu said: “How far is the tribunal willing to allow INEC to refuse to follow laid down rule and follow non-substantial rule, should form part of the issues in the tribunal’s decision.” NAN.]]>