NIKI TOBI, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): Elections to the senate took place throughout the country on 20th February, 1999. The 1st appellant contested the election of the Anambra South Senatorial Zone in the platform of the peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and won. The 1st Respondent felt aggrieved and initially filed a motion in the High Court, Abuja which was heard by Auta, J. The action was later filed in the National Assembly Election Tribunal, Awka. He asked the Tribunal to determine that the appellant was not duly elected and returned and that the 1st respondent was the person that was duly elected and ought to have been returned. He asked in the alternative that the election be nullified.
The case of the 1st respondent, in a nutshell is that there were three contestants at the PDP primary election in which he scored the highest votes of 937. The 1st appellant followed with 77 votes and Mrs. Uju Ozoka came third and last with 3 votes. The party Electoral Panel, accordi…