By Kenneth Atavti 

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has rejected an appeal made by Senator Smart Adeyemi, seeking to invalidate the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primary election in Kogi State.

This primary election resulted in Ahmed Usman Ododo being selected as the party’s candidate for the upcoming November 11, 2023 election.

The Court of Appeal ruled that the appeal presented by Adekunle Oladapo Otitoju on behalf of Senator Adeyemi lacked substance and merit, leading to its dismissal.

In a unanimous decision by a panel of three justices, the court found that Senator Adeyemi was unable to substantiate the allegations he made against the conduct of the APC and its leaders during the primary election.

Justice Mohammed Lawal Shuaib, delivering the lead judgment, ruled against Adeyemi on all three disputed issues.

Shuaib emphasized that Adeyemi’s claims of manipulation and falsification of primary election results needed to be proven beyond reasonable doubt, as required by law, due to the criminal nature of the allegations.

The court also rejected Adeyemi’s assertion that he was denied a fair hearing by the APC’s Appeal Committee concerning his petition against the alleged irregularities in the primary election.

Justice Shuaib explained that this issue was not raised in Adeyemi’s initial lawsuit at the Federal High Court, making it inappropriate to bring it up as a fresh issue at the Court of Appeal.

Given the lack of substantial and verifiable evidence provided by Adeyemi, the Court of Appeal determined that his allegations remained mere assertions without significant probative value. 

Consequently, the appeal was dismissed due to its lack of merit.

The Court of Appeal upheld the judgment made by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which was issued on July 12, 2023.

Justice Omotosho’s ruling had stated that Adeyemi failed to establish his allegations that Ododo’s nomination by the APC was not lawful.