Plateau PDP rejects judgment declaring Lalong as winner of senatorial seat

The Plateau chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has criticised the judgment that declared Simon Lalong, minister of labour and employment, as winner of the state’s southern senatorial election. 

On Monday, the petitions tribunal sitting in Jos sacked Napoleon Bali, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and declared Lalong, a former governor of the state, as winner of the vote.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Bali as the winner of the election with 148,844 votes, while Lalong scored 91, 674 to become runner-up in the February 25 election.

On Tuesday, Chris Hassan, the chairman of the party, rejected the judgment and said it did not reflect the will of the people. 

He said the tribunal erred to have relied on the internal squabbles of the PDP to deliver its judgment in favour of the petitioners, adding that the state chapter of the party had conducted a fresh congress and had “a solid and valid structure”.

“The judgment was an electoral robbery which is unacceptable to the people of Plateau because it is contrary to the will of the people of the constituencies which was freely expressed via the votes we got in the election,” he said.

 “In this case, the PDP had since complied with the judgment of Justice S.P. Gang through a repeat congress in September 2021 which was dutifully monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as required by law.

“This same congress was affirmed by the federal high court sitting in Jos in a judgment delivered by Justice D. V. Agishi in the case of Augustine Timkuk versus PDP validating the state executive of the party as duly elected.

 “This same judgment was also unanimously affirmed by the court of appeal, Jos in favour of the PDP in a ruling by Justice T. Y. Hassan, Justice I. A.  Andenyangtso and Justice O. O. Goodluck, delivered on 11 February, 2023.”

Hassan also rejected the judgment of the court that nullified the election of PDP’s Peter Gyendeng of Riyom/Barkin Ladi federal constituency and declared Fom Dalyop of the Labour Party (LP), who came second, as the winner.