By Vincent Ujumadu

AWKA—PARTIES to the petition filed by Hope Democratic Party, HDP, against the victory of Governor Peter Obi of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, in the 6 February election before

Anambra State governorship election petition tribunal have adopted their addresses.

This signifies the end of the legal fire works that began three months ago.

The tribunal has, however, adjourned the case indefinitely, and said the parties would be communicated on date of judgement through their counsel.

At the adoption of the addresses yesterday, the deputy governorship candidate of HDP, Chief Mike Okoye, apologised to the Justice Pius Damulak-led Governorship Election Tribunal to forgive whatever shortcomings on his part during the proceedings of the petition.

Okoye, who addressed the tribunal as counsel to his party, while adopting the final written address by the party, urged the tribunal to nullify the election and make an order for a fresh one to be conducted because, according to him, Obi did not win a quarter of votes cast in two-thirds of the 21 local government areas in Anambra State.

Also adopting their written addresses on behalf of their clients, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, counsel to Governor Peter Obi and Chief J. T. U. Nnodum, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lack of merit.

According to them, Obi won more than a quarter of valid votes cast in 15 of the 21 local government areas of the state.

The hearing of the petition by HDP witnessed some mild drama while it lasted. One was an allegation by Okoye, during one of the sittings, that some people burnt his Toyota Land Cruiser Jeep where it was parked, after the tribunal’s sitting the previous day, to intimidate him.

However, contrary to his claim, the jeep was later found at a Catholic Monastery at Nsugbe, a neighbouring community to his Umuleri country-home in Anambra East Local Government, virtually intact, a situation members of the tribunal did not take kindly to as they felt that Okoye made false allegation.

In fact, while reporting the incident to the tribunal, he had made insinuations to the effect that those who set his car ablaze carried out the action to prevent him from coming to the tribunal and told the tribunal that no amount of intimidation would stop him from pursuing justice in the petition to a conclusive end.