An appeal court in Abuja has declared the election of Udom Emmanuel of southern oil-rich Akwa Ibom state as invalid.
The appeal court abolished an earlier ruling of an election tribunal which upheld the victory of Emmanuel, the candidate of Jonathan’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the April 11 vote.
The court said the tribunal judgement was made invalid by rejecting the complaints of Umana Okon Umana of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the election was fraught with irregularities in 18 of the 31 local government areas of the state.
The court ordered the electoral body INEC to conduct fresh poll in the oil-rich state within 90 days.