Bayelsa State Governor Duoye Diri has expressed deep gratitude to God following the Supreme Court’s ruling that upheld his re-election as governor.
Quoting 1 Corinthians 15:57, Diri said, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In a post on his X handle, Governor Diri extended his thanks to his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, and the people of Bayelsa State for their unwavering support.
“On behalf of my workaholic Deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, and I, we thank God for today’s victory at the Supreme Court over our re-election. Big shout out to our supporters and good people of Bayelsa State for the mandate freely given us which has just been reaffirmed by this massive judgment,” he said.
Governor Diri also commended the Justices for their commitment to truth and appreciated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for standing by the results of the November 11, 2023, governorship election throughout the legal challenges.
“We appreciate the Justices for standing on the side of truth. We do commend the electoral body, INEC, for defending its declared results of the November 11, 2023 governorship election while the case lasted from the Tribunal, to the Court of Appeal and finally at the Supreme Court,” he added.
In a final note of gratitude, he said, “To our Legal Team, I say thank you. Congratulations Bayelsa!”
The Supreme Court, in its judgment on Friday, affirmed Governor Diri’s re-election by dismissing the appeal brought forward by Timipre Sylva, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the November 11, 2023, off-cycle election.
A five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Lawal Garba, upheld the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal from July 15, which had deemed Sylva’s appeal an abuse of court process for filing two notices of appeal. The panel ruled that, according to the 1999 Constitution, the APC governorship candidate had only one right to appeal the judgment of the Tribunal and not multiple appeals.
In a unanimous judgment, the Supreme Court dismissed Sylva’s appeal for lacking merit.
Earlier, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Governor Duoye Diri of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) the winner of the election, with a total of 175,196 votes, defeating Timipre Sylva of the APC, who polled 110,108 votes.