By Nkechi Eze
Fresh twists have emerged at the Anambra State Governorship Election Tribunal sitting in Awka, as the Action Alliance (AA) and its candidate in the November 8, 2025 governorship election, Nweke Ezechukwu Japhet, filed a motion seeking to strike out or dismiss the petition challenging the outcome of the poll.
The motion, brought pursuant to relevant provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022, including Sections 133, 134 and 136, as well as paragraphs of the First Schedule to the Act, asks the tribunal to strike out multiple grounds and paragraphs of the petition filed by Barrister Christopher Chukwudubem Nweke.
The petition is listed as EPT/AN/GOV/04/2025 and challenges the outcome of the Anambra State governorship election held on November 8, 2025, in which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared a winner.
In the application, the 14th and 15th respondents in the main petition Action Alliance and its candidate are seeking, among other reliefs, an order granting them leave to move the application before or during the pre-hearing session.
They are also asking the tribunal to strike out Grounds 36(b), 36(c), 37, 37(a), 38a, 38b, 39, 40 and 41 of the petition on the basis that they are incompetent, speculative, nebulous and allegedly fall outside the scope of Section 134 of the Electoral Act, 2022.
Specifically, the applicants argue that some of the challenged grounds relate to pre-election matters, including issues surrounding nomination and party primaries, which they contend are not within the jurisdiction of a post-election tribunal.
The motion further seeks the striking out of several paragraphs of the petition including paragraphs 44, 45, 46, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 70 and 82(b) on the grounds that they are vague, lack material particulars and contain allegations against individuals who are not joined as parties to the suit.
In addition, the applicants are praying the tribunal to strike out the names of the 4th to 29th respondents in the petition, arguing that their joinder violates Section 133(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022, since they were not declared elected in the governorship contest and therefore do not qualify as necessary respondents.
They also challenged paragraphs 42 and 43 of the petition for allegedly offending the rule against pleading law, contending that the petitioner merely recited sections of the Electoral Act without stating supporting material facts.
Beyond striking out specific portions, the applicants are urging the tribunal to dismiss the petition in its entirety for what they describe as failure to comply with mandatory provisions of paragraphs 4 and 7 of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022, which require clarity of grounds, facts and particulars.
In an affidavit deposed to in support of the motion, Nweke Ezechukwu Japhet, who identified himself as the governorship candidate of the Action Alliance in the election and the 15th respondent in the main petition, stated that the petition is fundamentally defective and legally unsustainable.
He averred that the alleged defects are so fundamental that they render the entire petition incompetent, warning that unless the tribunal grants the application, the respondents would be subjected to a time-consuming and costly trial based on what he termed an unsustainable action.
The applicants maintain that the grant of the application would not prejudice the petitioner and urged the tribunal to act in the interest of justice.
The development sets the stage for a potentially decisive procedural battle at the tribunal, as the panel will first have to determine whether the contested grounds and parties can stand before delving into the substantive issues surrounding the November 8 governorship election.
