Date: 2019-08-15

The Kwara State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal will on September 20 deliver judgment in the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Rasaq Atunwa, who is challenging the election of Governor Abdulrahman AbdulRazaq.

Lawyers to Atunwa and Abdulrazaq, at the resumed hearing on Wednesday, adopted their final written addresses before the three-member tribunal chaired by Justice Bassey Efiong.

The development therefore set the stage for the final verdict on the poll held on March 10.

Atunwa and the PDP are challenging AbdulRazaq's election on the grounds that the governor allegedly presented a forged secondary school certificate and was therefore not qualified to contest the election.

AbdulRazaq refuted the plaintiff's allegations and insisted that they were unfounded.

Other respondents in the case are the Independent National Electoral Commission and the All Progressives Congress.

While Atunwa called on the tribunal to hold that AbdulRazaq was not qualified to run in the election, AbdulRazaq said the petitioner failed to prove the allegation of forgery against him.

The respondents, therefore, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition.

The PDP's candidate, who had listed several witnesses for the case, only called WAEC to testify in the matter.

In its testimony, however, WAEC said AbdulRazaq took the examination and had his certificate issued to him as Razaq A.R., the same name he used for the examination in 1976.

WAEC, which was represented by Olorunsola Victor, a senior examination officer, also told the tribunal that at least 31 other candidates had their names abbreviated in the same year.

A classmate of AbdulRazaq at the Kaduna Government College, Kabiru Yaro, who also testified, told the tribunal that the governor sat in his front during the examination with serial number 119.

The tribunal slated judgment in the case for September 20.