Wike Loses Suit At Supreme Court

A suit filed by Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, challenging the relocation of the Rivers Governorship Election Petition Tribunal to Abuja, has been dismissed by the Supreme Court.

Wike had argued that the tribunal sitting in Abuja had no jurisdiction to entertain matters that happened in Rivers State.

He challenged the ruling of an appeal court on the matter, which had earlier held that the tribunal could sit in Abuja. The tribunal was moved to Abuja based on security reasons just like those of Adamawa, Akwa I‎bom, Borno and Yobe.

In its ruling on Tuesday, the apex court held that the tribunal was properly constituted and had jurisdiction to hear the petition filed by candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the governorship election, Dakuku Peterside.

The Supreme Court said the shift in location of the tribunal from Rivers to Abuja was out of necessity, noting that the appeal court did not err in law by ordering the‎ relocation of the tribunal and struck out Wike’s suit for lack of merit. ‎

It would be recalled that the tribunal on Saturday nullified the election of Wike as governor of Rivers State and ordered that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to hold a fresh election within 90 days.