Enugu state Governor, Peter Mbah, has extended a hand of fellowship to his political opponents to join him in working for the progress of the state.
Mbah spoke after the Enugu State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal dismissed the petition by the Labour Party and its governorship candidate in Enugu, Barr Chijioke Jonathan Edeoga against his election victory.
Edeoga’s legal team had alleged Mbah tendered a forged NYSC certificate to the Independent National Electronic Commission prior to the polls.
The party and its candidate also alleged over-voting and deliberate bypass of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machine for election rigging purposes.
But the tribunal chaired by Justice Kudirat Akano on Thursday dismissed the petition for lacking in merit while holding that Mbah was duly elected as governor by majority of lawful votes cast at the election.
Mbah said the LP and other contenders should now keep politics aside and take side with his government to develop the state.
“There is time for everything under the sun. There is time to strive and time to unite. We all put ourselves forward to serve Ndi Enugu. The people have spoken, and the Tribunal has also affirmed. If service was the motivation, then it is time to rise above partisanship and come together because there is so much work to be done.
“Our arms are wide open and I beckon on my brothers, who ran this race with us, to join us in the onerous task of building a new Enugu State of our dreams.
“In the same vein, I enjoin all our supporters to be magnanimous in victory. Politics is over. Governance began on 29th May when we were inaugurated. It is time to unite”.
The LP candidate disagreed with the judgment vowing to appeal it.
The national chairman of LP, Julius Abure, accused the governor of seeking federal government’s influence during the proceedings.
“In the wake of this judgement, we were aware of series of visits made by Mba to Aso Rock and we also took note of his level of confidence lately.
“However, we had ignored these ominous signs while hoping that the blind Lady of Justice will act impartially but we are shocked with this judicial endorsement,” Abure claimed.
Abure believes the judiciary has a key role to play in keeping democracy alive and safe.
“We therefore call for a concerted effort by all well meaning Nigerians to guide this all important arm of government and ensure that it is not captured by the state. We must all rise to save our democracy,” he added.
Enugu Guber: Gov Mbah Invites LP Candidate To Support His Administration After Tribunal Judgment is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
