ENUGU—The Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu has upheld the removal of Hon. Simon Atigwe of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from his seat in the House of Representatives, affirming the decision of the Election Petition Tribunal. In a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice J.O. Ekanem, the court declared Hon. Dennis Nnamdi Agbo of the Labour Party (LP) as the rightful winner of the February 3, 2024 re-run election for the Igbo-Eze North/Udenu Federal Constituency.
The ruling brings a conclusive end to the legal battle surrounding the seat, which was initially won by Agbo during the February 25, 2023 general election. Atigwe had been declared the winner of the re-run by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a decision Agbo contested at the tribunal, resulting in a victory that was upheld on appeal.
Ifeanyi Ogenyi, one of the lawyers representing the Labour Party, celebrated the outcome in a post on Wednesday.
“Congratulations to the people of Igbo-Eze North/Udenu Federal Constituency. The wheel of justice turns slowly, but it grinds. Truth and justice have prevailed, no matter the wait. Dennis Agbo has prevailed!” Ogenyi wrote.
The legal contest between Atigwe and Agbo has been closely followed, with Agbo successfully challenging his initial removal and emerging victorious through both the tribunal and appellate processes.
