New Telegraph

Tension, jubilation in Bayelsa as court orders fresh election

There was jubilation in and around Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, and also at the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday following the nulification of the November 2019 governorship election by a tribunal sitting in Abuja.
The Justice Ibrahim Sirajo-led panel had voided the outcome of the gubernatorial election that held in the state on November 16, over the exclusion of one of the registered political parties, Advanced Nigeria Democratic Party (ANDP), in the contest.
ANDP had in a petition it lodged before the tribunal, contended that it was unlawfully excluded from participating in the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), despite the fact that it fulfilled all the statutory requirements.The tribunal said it found merit in the petition and consequently nullified the election and ordered INEC to conduct a bye-election in the state within 90 days.
But the Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has said he will appeal the ruling and has consequently instructed his lawyers to file the necessary papers.
Governor Diri, who spoke shortly after the tribunal ruling, said he has implicit confidence in the judiciary that he would triumph in the end.
Also the immediate past governor of the state, Henry Seriake Dickson, has urged Bayelsans not to be perturbed by the judgment of the Election Petition Tribunal.
He described the judgment as a temporary setback which does not affect the status quo until the appeal processes are exhausted.
Also speaking the state’s APC Chairman, Amos Jothan said: “There is no problem. The tribunal has given their verdict concerning the Bayelsa elections and there is no two ways about it. We are poised to go for election when the time comes.”

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