By CHARLES IWUOHA

The Local Government Elections Petitions Tribunal sitting in Enugu has adjourned to Sept. 14 for judgment on a petition brought before it by a councillorship candidate of APC in Eke ward, Udi council area.

The Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) conducted Local Government elections in 260 wards and 17 council areas of the state on Feb. 29, 2020.

The chairman of the three-man panel, Justice J. E. Onah, adjourned the case to Sept. 14 for judgment after the adoption of the written addresses by the counsels of both parties (APC and PDP).

Earlier, the counsel to the APC, Mr Godwin Onwusi, said that the APC councillorship candidate, Mr Philip Eze, is praying the court to nullify the election held in two major pulling units in Eke ward on the ground that there were alleged irregularities.

Onwusi alleged that ballot papers were more than the officially issued ones during counting in one of the pulling units in the ward.

“The party is arguing that since the ballot papers were allegedly more than the ballot issued as well as disruption of election in another polling unit, the elections in the two pulling units affected should be nullified.

“And a fresh election held to determine the winner,” he said.

In his submission, the counsel to the PDP, Mr P.M. Onyia, said that the PDP had duly provided answers to claims and counter-claims of the APC as contained in the written address submitted with convincing evident to the honourable tribunal.

Speaking with journalists shortly after the adjournment of the case, a chieftain of the APC and Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr Osita Okechukwu, stressed the need for recovery of councils from governors across the country.

Okechukwu, who is from Eke political ward, made strong case for a free and fair election at the council level, arguing that there cannot be democracy without democracy at the grassroots.

“Our mission is to recover the local council from governors. Can there be democracy if there is no democracy at the grassroots level. I don’t think so.

“We urge that we must continue the mission to recover local councils that have been hijacked by our governors across board,” he said.