A member of the House of Representatives representing Abi/Yakurr Federal Constituency, Hon. Alex Egbona of the All Progressives Congress, was on Wednesday sacked by the Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Calabar.
Former Speaker of the Cross River State House of Assembly, Hon. John Gaul-Lebo of the Peoples Democratic Party, had filed a suit challenging Egbona’s victory in the February 23, 2019 House of Representatives election and had asked the court to nullify it on the ground of “massive irregularities.”
he also contended that Egbona was not the lawful candidate of APC.
Delivering judgment in the petition with number EPT/CAL/HR/11/2019 on Wednesday, chairman of the three-man tribunal, Justice Vincent Agabata, declared thatc as of February 23, 2019, Egbona was not qualified to contest the election.
He ruled that the votes scored in the election by Egbona were “defiant votes and therefore invalid and unlawful.”
Justice Agbata also ruled that the candidate of the PDP, John Gaul-Lebo, “scored the highest number of valid votes in the election and so, the certificate of return erroneously issued to Egbona should be withdrawn forthwith and issued to John Gaul-Lebo.”
