A Benin High Court on Friday, sacked Victor Emuankhagbon, as the elected executive chairman of Esan South-East Local Government Area.
The removal was sequel to a petition filed by Peter Aguele against the conduct of January 24, 2018 Local Government primary election that produced the ousted chairman as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Peter Aguele and Victor Emuankhagbon are both members of APC in the State.
APC had on January 24, 2018 conducted primary elections to elect chairmen and councillors for the state local government elections in the state. The main elections were conducted March 3, 2018 by the Edo State Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC).
In the petition, Aguele averred that he was duly elected as the party’s candidate through direct primary while the ousted chairman argued that he emerged as consensus candidate.
In his judgment, the presiding judge, Daniel Okungbowa, held that the petitioner is the rightful candidate of the party for the election, having emerged through direct primary.
He, however, ordered that the respondent should stop parading himself as the chairman of the council, and that he should refund all the monies so far paid to him while in office as chairman of the council in the last two years to the treasury of the council and that the petitioner should be paid all the monies and entitlements due to him since 2018 as the rightful candidate and the elected chairman of the council.
Reacting to the judgment, Peter Aguele, the now declared chairman of the council commended the judiciary for being the last hope of the common man.
Aguele, however, dedicated the victory to the people of Esan South-East local government and members of APC in the state and the local government.
In his reactions, Charity Aiguobarueghian, Esq, counsel to the ousted chairman while commending the court for the judgment said his client will challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal. And noted that there was miscarriage of justice as the petitioner was unable to prove his case beyond reasonable doubt.
