THE Court of Appeal sitting in Akure, the Ondo State capital, will today hear an appeal brought by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and two of its candidate, Festus Aregbesola and Gbenga Edema, on the dismissal of their petitions by the state House of Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal.
The two different appeals filed by APC’s counsel Charles Titiloye and its candidates challenged the dismissal of the two petitions for Akure South Constituency I and Ilaje Constituency II.
The judges, led by Justice Anthony Ogar, on July 8, dismissed the petitions during the pre-hearing session.
The tribunal raised technical points of law of non-compliance with Electoral Act and ruled that the petitioners must file application for pre-hearing session for each and every respondent’s reply before the tribunal.
It said failure to do so amount to the abandonment of the petition with consequence of dismissal.
In the two appellants’ briefs, Titiloye argued that the tribunal erred in law to have refused to apply the doctrine of waiver contained in paragraph 53(2) of the first Schedule to Electoral Act 2010 as amended.
He argued that a party, who has taken fresh step in the election petition after awareness of a non-compliance with the rules, is deemed to have waived the said non-compliance with the rules of the tribunal.
Titiloye, on behalf of the appellants, prayed the appellate court to allow the appeal and revert the petition back to the tribunal for trial on its merit.
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