Anambra Tribunal To Get 3Panels Of Judges

Anambra state Election Petitions Tribunal is to get three panels of Judges following a total of 31 petitions challenging the outcome of the State and National Assembly elections in the area

Deadline for the filing of petitions ended by 12 midnight last week Friday while respondents to the petitions have commenced filing of their replies ahead of the commencement of hearing on all the matters .

A breakdown of the petitions indicates that a total of 24 petitions are for the Senate and Federal House of Representatives positions while seven petitions are for the state House of Assembly.

Confirming this development the Secretary of the Tribunal Mr Muazu Bagudu , due to the number of petitions before it the state may likely have three panels of Judges in view of the number of matters and also in a bid to meet up with the 180 days life span of the Tribunal as stipulated but the President of the Appeal Court.

Top on the list of petitions at the National Assembly level include three petitions against Sen Ifeanyi Ubah of the Young Progressives Party YPP as well as two petitions against Sen Victor Umeh of the Labour Party LP.

Also the member representing Anambra East and West Federal Constituency Chief Chinedu Obidigwe and Mrs Lynda Ikpeazu are challenging the declaration of Peter Anekwe of LP and that of Emeka Idu of the same Labor Party.

Speaker of Anambra Assembly Mr Uchenna Okafor and the Majority Leader Mr Emeka Afoka are challenging the declaration of independent National Electoral Commission INEC which announced their failure to win the said election.

Contained in most of the petitions are prayers that the election be cancelled and a fresh election conducted alleging over voting and multiple tomb printing.

The petitioners are also challenging the declaration of results in all the polling units where the B-VAS did not function well and also areas that the machines were not used for the accreditation of voters.

Continuing the Tribunal Secretary Mr Bagudu noted that with the publication of the list of petitions, the panelists would certainly commence sitting in no distant time with the pretrial conference .

He explained that the Tribunal is currently receiving the replies of the respondents whose were petitioned against expressing hopes that sitting would commence within this month.