The Court of Appeal has affirmed Bayelsa State Governor, Sen. Douye Diri as the authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in last year’s gubernatorial election in the state.
The court sitting in Imo State therefore dismissed an appeal filed by a former NDDC boss, Timi Alaibe seeking to be declared the winner of the party’s gubernatorial primary election conducted on September 3, 2019.
A Federal High Court judge, Tijjani Ringim, had earlier dismissed Alaibe’s suit for lacking in merit.
Alaibe, who sued Diri and joined the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), urged the court to quash Diri’s nomination as the process that produced him was “flawed”.
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Justice Ringim ruled that “Evidence available to me indicates that the process leading to the emergence of Diri as the candidate of the PDP in the September 3 governorship primaries in Bayelsa was legitimate.”
Unsatisfied with the ruling, Alaibe filed an appeal at the superior court.
The Court of Appeal affirmed the lower court’s ruling today.
The Herald recalls that the Supreme Court declared Diri winner of the governorship election in the state on February 13, a day before governor-elect David Lyon of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was due to be sworn in.