The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday confirmed Dr. Asue Ighodalo as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the 2024 Edo State gubernatorial election.
Justice James Omotosho delivered the court’s decision in a judgment on a suit marked CS/469/24, dismissing the case filed by Philip Shaibu, who had contested Ighodalo’s nomination as the PDP’s candidate.
The court ruled that Ighodalo was duly nominated during the party’s primary election held on February 22, 2024, at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City.
This development follows an earlier verdict by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had nullified the PDP election that produced Ighodalo as its governorship candidate, citing violations of the Electoral Act 2022 and the PDP Guidelines during the primary election.
Justice Omotosho held that the suit, being a pre-election case, was filed outside the 14-day limit allowed under Section 285(9) of the Constitution.
The judge also noted that although forgery or non-possession of a voter’s card is a disqualifying factor under Section 182 of the Constitution, the plaintiffs failed to prove that Ighodalo had forged his voter’s card, as alleged.
Ighodalo won the primary with 577 votes, defeating Mr. Shaibu and 10 other contenders.
It is currently unclear whether Mr. Shaibu plans to appeal the decision.
Ighodalo, a prominent business lawyer based in Lagos, is widely regarded as the leading candidate for the gubernatorial election scheduled for September 2024.
