The National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal in Umuahia has ruled in favor of Rep. Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, by dismissing a petition challenging his election.
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The Labour Party (LP) had brought the petition to the tribunal, but it was deemed lacking in merit by Justice Samson Paul-Gang, who led the three-member panel.
Justice Paul-Gang stated that the petitioners failed to provide sufficient evidence to support their case beyond reasonable doubt, leading to the dismissal of the petition. He urged all parties involved to bear the administrative costs incurred during the proceedings.
The petitioner, Frank Chinasa of the Labour Party, had contested the re-election of Mr. Kalu, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), for the Bende Federal Constituency of Abia State. Chinasa’s counsel, Yunus Usman (SAN), argued that Mr. Kalu was not qualified for the February 25th poll due to discrepancies in his educational certificates.
Usman contended that Mr. Kalu used various names in different educational documents, which raised doubts about his eligibility. He further alleged that the name on Form EC9 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission was different from the names on Mr. Kalu’s birth certificate, first-degree certificate, NYSC certificate, and WASSCE certificate.
In response, Mr. Kalu’s counsel, Kelvin Nwufo, defended his client by presenting evidence of the harmonization of the names through a deed of proof and a Federal Government gazette that recorded the change of name.
Justice Paul-Gang’s ruling emphasized that the burden of proof regarding the alleged falsification of certificates rested with the petitioner, who failed to substantiate the claims beyond reasonable doubt.
The proceedings also witnessed a minor incident as the Action Alliance (AA) candidate, Ifeanyi Igbokwe, filed a fresh application to impose his name. Igbokwe clarified that he was not challenging Mr. Kalu’s re-election but wanted to address concerns about the use of his name in the proceedings.
The tribunal adjourned the case for a future hearing. Meanwhile, counsel to the Action Alliance, Daniel Anya, had earlier submitted a written address urging the tribunal to annul Mr. Kalu’s election due to the exclusion of the party’s name and logo from the ballot during the poll.
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