Dipo Olowookere
By Dipo Olowookere
The forgery suit filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) against the Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, has been dismissed by the Supreme Court.
The judgement, which was delivered on Friday, May 28, 2021, came barely two months after the Elections Petitions Tribunal struck out the petition by the Action Democratic Party (ADP) and its governorship candidate, Mr Iboi Lucky.
At the ruling today, the apex court said the suit lacks merit, indicating that Mr Obaseki can remain as Governor of the state.
The APC had asked the court to remove Mr Obaseki as Governor, arguing that he contested the September 19, 2020, governorship election with forged documents.
The Governor, who crossed from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to secure a ticket to participate in the exercise for a second time, had maintained that he did not forge his educational results, emphasising that his first-degree certificate was issued to him by the prestigious University of Ibadan.
But the APC had disagreed, challenging the authenticity in court and joined the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the suit.
Two days ago, the Court of Appeal in Benin upheld the victory of Governor Obaseki, ruling that he did not forge his certificates with which he contested the 2020 governorship election as alleged.
