Governorship, National and State House of Assembly Elections Petition Tribunal in Lagos has received 48 petitions arising from the February 25 and March 18 national and state elections.
Five petitions were filed in respect of the Senatorial election, 26 for House of Representatives, 13 for Lagos State House of Assembly and four for governorship polls.
The petitioners included Labour Party’s (LP’s) governorship candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who filed for himself, Olajide Adediran aka Jandor and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Allied Peoples Movement (APP) and All Peoples Movement (APM).
They are challenging the election of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In his petition marked: EPT/LAG/GOV/04/2023, Rhodes-Vivour listed three grounds of appeal against the 1st to 4th respondents, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the governor, his deputy and the APC.
Rhodes-Vivour is contending that the 2nd respondent, Sanwo-Olu, was at the time of the election, not qualified to contest.
He said the 2nd respondent was invalid by reason of corrupt practices or non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022 and 1999 Constitution.
He contended in addition that the 2nd respondent was not duly elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast.
Rhodes-Vivour prayed the tribunal to grant his prayers and declare him winner of the governorship election.
In their petition marked: EPT/LAG/GOV/01/2023, dated April 7, Adediran, the governorship candidate of the PDP, the first to sixth respondents are INEC, Sanwo-Olu, Hazmat, APC, Rhodes-Vivour and LP.
Adediran and PDP in their two grounds of appeal are contending that Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat were at the time of the election, not qualified to contest the election.
He also submitted that Rhodes-Vivour, declared by the first respondent as having scored the second highest number of votes, was at the time of the election, not qualified to contest the poll.
Adediran urged the tribunal to dismiss the votes of Sanwo-Olu and Rhodes-Vivour and declare him governor.
The 1st to 5th respondents in the petition of the APM include INEC, Sanwo-Olu, APC and Hamzat.
The four grounds upon which the APM based its petition are that the 2nd and 4th respondents were, at the time of the election, not qualified to contest the poll.
APM argued that the election was invalid by reason of corrupt practices or non-compliance with the Electoral Act, 2022.
The party said the 2nd respondent was not duly elected by the majority of lawful votes cast at the election
The respondents have 21 days, from their date of service, to file their reply.