Appeal Court upholds conviction of professor jailed for rigging election for Akpabio

The Court of Appeal in Calabar on Wednesday, April 30, upheld the conviction and three-year jail sentence of Peter Ogban, a professor of soil science at the University of Calabar, who was found guilty of rigging a senatorial election in favour of Godswill Akpabio, the current president of the Nigerian Senate.

Ogban’s conviction, initially handed down by a State High Court in Uyo in 2021, stemmed from his role as a returning officer in the 2019 general elections in Akwa Ibom North-West District.

The appellate court not only affirmed the trial court’s ruling but also condemned Ogban’s involvement in electoral malpractice, especially given his academic standing. Ogban was found guilty of announcing manipulated election results in Oruk Anam and Etim Ekpo local government areas to benefit Akpabio, then a candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Akpabio, who had previously defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), lost the 2019 election to PDP candidate Chris Ekpenyong, a former deputy governor of Akwa Ibom State. Despite the falsified results, Akpabio’s defeat stood, and he only returned to the Senate after a subsequent election in 2023, in which he emerged victorious and was elected Senate president.

During the original trial, Ogban admitted to manipulating the election results, including the addition of around 5,000 fictitious votes to the APC’s tally in Oruk Anam. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) prosecuted the case, which was seen as a landmark in efforts to ensure electoral accountability in Nigeria.

At the time of sentencing, Ogban pleaded for leniency, but the presiding judge, Justice Augustine Odokwo, said the court was compelled to allow the law to take its course, noting that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case is one of several recent prosecutions of academics involved in election fraud. Another university professor, Ignatius Uduk of the University of Uyo, was also recently sentenced to three years in prison for similar offences, underscoring ongoing efforts to curb electoral malpractice in Nigeria.