Court dismisses suit seeking to disqualify Delta gov

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal brought before it by Ikie Aghwarianovwe against the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, for lacking in merit.

In the appeal, Aghwarianowe, a governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, was seeking the disqualification of the governor over alleged falsification of documents.

He had in October 2022 dragged the governor to court alleging that Oborevwori submitted false documents to the Independent National Electoral Commission to aid his qualification for the 2019 House of Assembly election in the state.

In a unanimous judgment of the apex court delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the court held that the appellant failed to prove his case beyond reasonable doubt.

While dismissing the appeal for lacking in merit, the court ordered the applicant to pay N3 million each as the cost of the suit to Oborevwori and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party which was joined in the suit.

The justice held that “the mere fact that there were differentials in names did not amount to falsity.”

The justice added, “An error in the date of birth in a certificate not shown evidentially to emanate from the respondent cannot amount to falsity.”

-PUNCH