Barely three days to the governorship election in Ondo State, the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, has sacked the candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Olusola Ebiseni.
The appellate court, in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel led by Justice Gamma Barka, invalidated Ebiseni's candidacy based on an appeal that his party, LP, entered against him.
It nullified the judgement of the Federal High Court in Abuja which had ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to recognize Ebiseni and his running mate, Ezekiel Awude, as flag-bearers of the LP for the gubernatorial poll billed for Saturday, November 16.
The appellate court, in its judgement that was read by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, held that it found merit in the appeal marked: CA /ABJ/CV/1172/2024, which the political party brought against Ebiseni and Awude.
It will be recalled that the High Court had in the judgement that was delivered by Justice Emeka Nwite, affirmed the duo as bonafide candidates for the governorship poll.
Justice Nwite directed the electoral body to accord recognition to the plaintiffs (Ebiseni and Awude) after he upheld their case marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1105/2024.
The trial court maintained that evidence adduced before it established that a second primary election the LP held in the state, which produced the plaintiffs, was validly conducted.
It further held that there was evidence that the plaintiffs paid the sum of N20million to obtain the nomination form and were duly cleared by the party to participate in the said primary poll.
More so, Justice Nwite noted that the LP had also ordered Ebiseni to pay N5m to one Festus Olorunfemi that stepped down from the governorship race, to take care of his expenses.
He, therefore, ordered INEC to accept the nomination of Ebiseni and Awude and publish their names as lawful candidates of the LP for the Ondo state governorship election.
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