TORTI
V.
UKPABI & ORS

(1984) JELR 45267 (SC)

Supreme Court · SC.109/1983 · 20 Jan 1984 · Nigeria

CORAM

GEORGE SODEINDE SOWEMIMO JSC AYO GABRIEL IRIKEFE JSC MOHAMMED BELLO JSC ANDREWS OTUTU OBASEKI JSC KAYODE ESO JSC ANTHONY NNAEMEZIE ANIAGOLU JSC MUHAMMADU LAWAL UWAIS JSC

Ratio Decidendi

Core Terms ^Beta

3rd respondent

petitioner

1st respondent

reasonable doubt

federal court of appeal

exhibit m

chief chris ukpabi

respondent

returning officer

senatorial district

standard of proof

exhibit c

state constituencies

election court

issue of admissibility

issue of proper custody

said election

federal electoral commission

learned trial judges

majority of lawful votes

trial court

allegation of falsification of results

evidence of petitioner

proper custody of the returns

said copy

admissibility of the exhibits

agents mr. kalu uko

court of law

j.c.a

only proof

safe custody

active assistance of the police

addresses of counsel

appeal of dr. t.u. torti

conduct of the police

election result

electoral act states

exhibit a

first respondent

following evidence

front of the score of the npn

judges amadi-obi

judgment of the federal court of appeal

judgment of the high court

leading judgment

learned justice of the supreme court

respondent chief chris ukpabi

state commissioner of police

virtue of s.93 evidence act

ESO, J.S.C. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): On 2nd November, 1983, I allowed the appeal of Dr. T.U. Torti, the appellant in this appeal against the judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal. In my judgment I described the system employed by the respondent as simplistic but crude. I will now give my reasons for the conclusion I reached in my judgment.

The background to this case is very simple. Both the appellant, Torti, and the 1st respondent, Ukpabi, were candidates for election to the Umuahia senatorial district. The Federal Electoral Commission (Fedeco), which body was constitutionally set up to conduct the election, declared the first respondent elected. The figures as announced by Fedeco were as follows:

NPN (Ukpabi) 172,071

NPP (Torti) 153,832

thus the NPN had a majority of 18, 239.

In this case the appellant disputed only three constituencies to wit -

(i) Olokoro/Ubakala - wherein Fedeco recorded the NPN as having scored 16535 and the NPP 6224. Whereas according to the content…

TORTI V. UKPABI & ORS

TORTI
V.
UKPABI & ORS