The Supreme Court has dismissed an application by Emeka Ihedioha, former governor of Imo, seeking the removal of Hope Uzodinma from office as the state governor.

In a judgment delivered on Tuesday, Tijjani Abubakar, who read the lead verdict, dismissed the application for lacking in merit.

Abubakar described the application as unnecessary and vexatious.

The court also awarded the cost of N40 million against Mike Ozekhome, Ihedioha’s lawyer, for bringing the matter before the court.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has won all the 38 chairmanship and 177 councillorship seats in Ekiti state.

On Saturday, the Ekiti State Independent Electoral Commission (EKSIEC) conducted elections in all the LGAs in the state.

According to NAN, returning officers in the LGAs and local council development areas presented the results of the election at the EKSIEC headquarters in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.

On Sunday, Cornelius Akintayo, EKSIEC chairman, commended the electorate for their peaceful conduct during the election.

Akintayo also praised political parties in the state for their show of sportsmanship, while applauding media personnel and security agencies for their professionalism.

He listed the political parties that took part in the election as the Action Alliance (AA), Action Democratic Congress (ADC), African Democratic Party (ADP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Others were the Labour Party (LP), the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and the Zenith Labour Party ZLP.

Earlier, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) had declared that they would not be participating in the council elections.

The court of appeal in Lagos, on Saturday, upheld the election of Alex Otti of the Labour Party (LP) as the governor of Abia state.

Okey Ahiwe, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had earlier challenged the outcome of the election at the tribunal.

Ahiwe claimed that Otti was unqualified to run for the election as he was not a registered member of the LP.

He added that the governor forged his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate.

On October 6, the tribunal upheld the election of Otti as the governor of the state.

Reacting to the appeal court’s ruling, Ahiwe, in a statement by Victor Nwokocha, his media adviser, called on party members and supporters to remain calm.

He expressed confidence in God and the judiciary.

He added that his legal team would review the judgment of the appeal court for further action.

“When we embarked on the journey to reclaim our mandate through judicial processes, it was a calculated resolution and we were conscious that the journey would not be a sprint but a peculiar marathon with inevitable twists and turns,” he said.

“Our destination was clearly defined from the onset, and our focus is unchanged. So, at this juncture, our faith in God is renewed, as well as our solid confidence in the judiciary.

“I therefore encourage all my supporters to stay calm, keep praying to God, and look beyond the eclipse of transitional sunset.”

He expressed gratitude to God, his supporters across political party lines, his dynamic legal team, family, friends, and well-wishers.