The Supreme Court has nullified the election of David Lyon of the All Progressives Congress as governor of Bayelsa State over the forged certificate presented to Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by his running mate, Degi-Eremieoyo.
The governor-elect and his deputy were due to take the oath of office on Friday, February 14, 2020 after INEC declared APC winner of the November 16, 2019 governorship election.
The five-man panel headed by Justice Mary Odili ordered that the certificate of return issued to both Lyon and Degi-Eremieoyo be withdrawn and issued to the party with the second highest votes that met the required constitutional spread.
Justice Ejembi Eko who read the lead judgement agreed with federal high court of Abuja ruling that disqualified Degi-Eremieoyo from participating in the election.
Ejembi Eko, in the Supreme Court ruling, said that since Lyon and Degi-Eremieoyo held a joint ticket, the disqualification of the deputy governor-elect invalidated their nomination by the APC.
The court ruling held that Lyon’s running mate submitted a Form CF 001 containing false information of a fundamental nature to INEC.
The case was a pre-election issue filed by the governorship candidate of the PDP, Douye Diri.
