From Kayode Lawal, Abuja.
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the appeal brought before it by the Labour Party LP and its governorship candidate in the March 18 election, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour
seeking disqualification of Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Sanwo-Olu and his Deputy Obafemi Hamza from the poll.
The Apex Court held that the appeal totally lacked merit for lt to survive.
In a unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Garba Lawal, the Supreme Court held that the allegations of renouncing Nigerian citizenship by the Lagos State Deputy Governor for the United States of America cannot be used to disqualify the respondents.
The Apex Court said that since Obafemi Hamza is a Nigerian by birth, his acquisition of American citizen has not taken his right as a Nigerian from him.
Besides, the court said that the Labour Party and the Governorship candidate failed woefully to even lead credible evidence that the Deputy Governor indeed renounced his Nigerian citizenship.
The Apex Court therefore upheld the decision of the Court of Appeal which had on November 15 dismissed the earlier appeal filed by Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour and Labour Party against the election of Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The Court of Appeal three-member panel led by Yargata Nimpar, had in a unanimous decision affirmed the judgement of the Lagos State Election Petitions Tribunal that upheld the victory of Sanwo-Olu as the elected governor of Lagos in the March 18 election.
Details later.
