The Anambra State Election Petitions Tribunal on Tuesday struck out the suit filed by a former Minister of Information, Prof. Dora Akunyili, against the election of Dr. Chris Ngige as the senator representing Anambra Central.
The tribunal cited lack of jurisdiction.
It was based on a recent Supreme Court judgment that all election petitions should be concluded within 180 days.
Akunyili, who ran on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, filed the matter in May 2011.
In the course of the hearing of the petition, the tribunal struck out the matter. But Akunyili headed to the Court of Appeal and it ruled that the matter could not be dismissed on technical grounds.
It also ordered the tribunal to continue with the hearing of the petition.
When the tribunal tried to resume the matter, Ngige objected, on the grounds that the 180 days mandatory period for the hearing of election petitions had elapsed.
When the tribunal declined, on the grounds that it was starting the matter afresh, Ngige went on appeal.
The apeal court upheld the tribunal’s decision.
But this was invalidated by the recent Supreme Court decision on election petitions.
Akunyili’s case was the sixth to be struck out on that premise by the tribunal.
