ALI ABUBAKAR BABANDI GUMEL, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): Elections were held for seats into the Ondo State House of Assembly on 14th April, 2007. For the Ese-Odo Constituency, Mr Ibukun Olayemi Kalasuwe (1st Respondent herein) was the candidate of the Labour Party (LP) while Mr. Igbekele Bolodeoku (Appellant herein) was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). At the end of the elections, the INEC (2nd Respondent herein) declared and returned Mr. Igbekele as the person duly elected with majority of lawful votes Mr. Kalasuwe was aggrieved by the return and declaration of the result of the election. He sought to challenge the result of the election in an election petition. Paragraph 12 of this petition sets out the grounds upon which it was brought as follows:-
12(a) The 1st Respondent was not duly elected by a majority of lawful votes cast at the election as no election took place in Ese-Odo Constituency;
(b) The purported election of the 1st Respondent as memb…