High Court Dismisses Criminal Summons Against Edo Governor-Elect Okpebholo

Our reporter

An Abuja High Court, presided over by Justice Charles Agbaza, has nullified a criminal summons issued on September 12 by Magistrate Abubakar Mukhtar of the Wuse Magistrate Court in Abuja against Senator Monday Okpebholo.
The summons pertained to allegations of certificate forgery, specifically accusing Okpebholo of providing conflicting dates of birth in his nomination forms submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the Edo governorship election.

Justice Agbaza declared the proceedings void, citing that the magistrate lacked proper jurisdiction and that the summons contained legal errors. He concurred with Okpebholo’s defense that the summons was illegal, unconstitutional, and infringed upon his right to a fair hearing as guaranteed by Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Okpebholo was initially ordered to appear in court on September 20, shortly before the September 21 governorship election, based on allegations from Aginbatse, a state indigene, who claimed that Okpebholo had made false statements regarding his date of birth.
Okpebholo’s defense attorney, Andrew Emwanta, argued that the summons was a tactic to disqualify him from running in the election under false pretenses and sought a declaration of the proceedings’ illegality, along with a prohibition order to halt further legal actions under case No. CR/W22/816/2024.

Justice Agbaza supported Emwanta’s argument, emphasizing that the magistrate should have considered the evidence presented by Okpebholo before issuing the summons. Consequently, the magistrate was prohibited from continuing with the case, although Justice Agbaza noted that the magistrate retained the discretion to set a new hearing date if necessary.

This ruling effectively clears Governor-Elect Okpebholo of the allegations related to certificate forgery, ensuring his eligibility to assume office without the hindrance of these legal challenges.