The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Thursday upheld the election of Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State.

In an unanimous judgment by the five-member panel led by Justice A. O. Belgore, the appellate court asked the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Emmanuel Jime to pay a total of N150,000 for filling the application against Governor Ortom.

In reaching its decision, the court resolved all the five issues considered in the appeal against the appellants and upheld the earlier judgment of the Benue State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal which had earlier affirmed Ortom’s victory at the poll. It held that the appellants’ appeal lacked merit.

 Jime and the APC had approached the court to challenge the October 7 decision of the Benue State Election Petitions Tribunal on the grounds that the poll was marred by irregularities and should therefore be nullified.

Speaking to newsmen shortly after the tribunal ruling,  Jime vowed to contest the decision, arguing that the Benue State tribunal erred in law by treating his petition unfairly.