In a decisive ruling today, August 23, a five-member panel of the Supreme Court upheld Senator Duoye Diri’s re-election as Governor of Bayelsa State. The panel dismissed the appeal filed by Timipre Sylva, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, challenging the results of the November 11, 2023, off-cycle election.
Led by Justice Lawal Garba, the panel confirmed the Court of Appeal's July 15 decision, which had found Sylva’s appeal to be an abuse of court process due to the filing of two separate notices of appeal. According to the panel, the 1999 Constitution permits only a single appeal from the Tribunal's judgment, thus ruling out Sylva’s multiple filings.
The Supreme Court’s unanimous decision emphasized that Sylva’s appeal lacked merit. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had previously announced that Governor Duoye Diri of the PDP secured 175,196 votes, defeating Sylva, who received 110,108 votes.
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