The Labor Party in Rivers State has expressed its lack of surprise regarding the verdict of the Rivers State Governorship Election Tribunal held in Abuja, which affirmed Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s election. Gogo Wellington, the Publicity Secretary of the Labor Party in Rivers, conveyed in an interview with Today FM that the party intends to escalate the matter to the Court of Appeal to contest Governor Fubara’s victory as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
Wellington emphasized that the Labor Party believes it still has a compelling case to present in the Court of Appeal, supported by substantial evidence indicating that the election was marred by violence and irregularities.
He stated, “We wouldn’t describe the ruling of the Election Petition Tribunal as surprising, but rather, we are disappointed that despite presenting all the facts and evidence to support our case, the Petition Tribunal concluded that we failed to establish our case.”
The party remains confident in its capacity to demonstrate that the election in Rivers State was tarnished by various forms of violence and malpractices, which are unacceptable in contemporary electoral conduct.
In light of this, the Labor Party intends to progress to the Appeal Court to further challenge the elections in Rivers State, as they believe it lacked the qualities required for a gubernatorial election in a state like Rivers.
Furthermore, the party is also contesting the eligibility of Siminalayi Fubara to run in the gubernatorial election in Rivers State.
The Rivers State Governorship Election Tribunal, which convened in Abuja, upheld Governor Fubara’s election on Monday, dismissing lawsuits brought by all other political parties contesting his victory.