On Wednesday, April 30, Peter Ogban, a professor of soil science at Calabar University, was upheld the conviction and three years in prison at the Calabar Court of Appeal on Wednesday, April 30, who was convicted of the Senate elections of Nigeria’s current Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
O’Baban’s conviction was originally held in the Uyo State High Court in 2021, and stemmed from his role as a returnee in the 2019 general election held in the 2019 Akwa Ibom North-West District.
The Court of Appeal not only confirmed the trial court’s ruling, but also condemned Ogban’s participation in the election malfeasance, especially given his academic status. Ogban was found guilty of announcing the election results in Oruk Anam and Etim Ekpo Local Government Areas to benefit Akpabio, a candidate for All Progressives Congress (APC).
Akpabio, who had previously defected from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), lost to PDP candidate Chris Ekpenyong in former deputy governor of Akwa Ibom State. Despite the forged results, Akpabio’s failure stood very strong, and he returned to the Senate after the subsequent elections in 2023, where he won and was elected president of the Senate.
In the initial trial, Ogban admitted to manipulating the election results, including adding about 5,000 fictional votes to Oruk Anam. The Independent National Election Commission (INEC) prosecuted the case, which was regarded as a landmark of efforts to secure election responsibilities in Nigeria.
During the sentencing, Ogban begged for leniency, but Chairman Judge Augustine Odokwo said the court was forced to allow the law to adopt the law, noting that the prosecution proved its case in reasonable doubt.
The case is one of several recent prosecutions by scholars involved in election fraud. Ignatius Uduk, another university professor at Uyo University, recently sentenced to three years in prison for similar crimes, highlighting efforts to curb election malfeasance in Nigeria.
