BREAKING: Appeal court gives governorship election victory to Lalong as PDP suffers defeat

- An appeal court in Jos, Plateau has affirmed the election victory of Governor Simon Lalong of the state

- The court fined Jeremiah Useni of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) N200,000 in favour of Lalong

- Useni's appeal against Lalong was thrown out for lacking merit

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suffered a huge defeat on Friday, November 29, as an appeal court sitting in Jos, Plateau, ruled in favour of Simon Lalong, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2019 governorship election. 

Channels Television reports that Justice Adumein Otisi, who led the judgement, threw out the appeal filed by PDP’s Jeremiah Useni for lacking merit. 

The appeal court also fined Useni the sum of N200,000 in favour of Lalong and the APC. 

Legit.ng earlier reported how supporters and members of the PDP in Benue were, on Thursday, November 28, were greeted with the news that the appeal court had delivered a ruling in favour of Governor Samuel Ortom.

The judgement was delivered in Abuja with the court throwing away the appeal filed by Emmanuel Jime, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the governorship election of March 9. 

The ruling was a decision unanimously taken by the panel of judges with the argument that Jime's appeal lacked merit. In his reaction, Jime said he had accepted the outcome of the appellate court in good faith.

He, however, said in a statement by his spokesman, Kula Tersoo, in Makurdi, that Ortom did not win the 2019 gubernatorial election in Benue.