Hope Uzodimma, the new governor-elect of Imo State will be sworn in the next few hours as the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial candidate has received his Certificate of Return from the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC).
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He received the certificate on Wednesday afternoon, barely 24 hours after the Supreme Court nullified the election of Emeka Ihedioha as the governor of the state.
Supreme Court had on Tuesday nullified the election of Emeka Ihedioha and declared Hope Uzodimma as the winner.
The apex court’s seven-man panel led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Tanko Muhammad, declared Hope Uzodinma as the winner of the March 9, 2019, governorship election and the validly elected governor of the state.
The court in its lead judgment read by Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun ordered that the certificate of return issued to Ihedioha be immediately withdrawn.
She directed the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue a fresh certificate of return to Uzodinma.
The court held that the lower courts erred in law when it rejected evidence tendered before them to the extent that votes from 388 polling units were not credited to the APC and Hope Uzodinma
She also directed that Uzodinma must be immediately sworn in as the Governor of Imo State.
