The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that it would give effect to today’s Supreme Court judgement sacking the All Progressives Congress’ (APC) candidate as the winner of the November 16, 2019 governorship election in the state.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Festus Okoye, told Daily Trust exclusively today in Abuja that the commission would back to its Operation Department to determine the party that meet up the Apex Court ruling.
“The Supreme Court has directed the commission to issue the Certificate of Return (CoR) to the political party that placed second in the Bayelsa governorship election and which also has the geographical spread in the election.
“So, what the commission would do is to go back to its Operation Department and make a determination on which political party came second in the election and which political party got the geographical spread in the election.
“Based on that, we would carry out the judgement of the Supreme Court. We would do that when we get the judgement of the Supreme Court, so that we would know clearly what the Supreme Court want us to do and we would carry it out,” Okoye told Daily Trust.
The Supreme Court earlier today sacked the Bayelsa State governor-elect, David Lyon of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and his running-mate, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo 24 hours to their inauguration on February 14.
A five-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Mary Peter-Odili ordered INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return (CoR) issued to the APC candidate as the winners of the November 16, 2019 governorship election in the state.
Accordingly, the apex court in its unanimous judgement delivered by Justice Ejembi Eko, also ordered INEC to issue fresh certificates to the candidates of the party with the next highest votes and with the required constitutional spread of votes in the results of the election.
Lyon was sacked for presenting a running mate with fake qualification.