An Akwa Ibom State High Court in Uyo has sentenced Professor Ignatius Uduk, a former Collation/Returning Officer for the Essien Udim State Constituency during the 2019 general elections, to six years in prison for electoral fraud.
The verdict was delivered by Justice Bassey Nkanang after a five-year trial.
Professor Uduk, a lecturer in Human Kinetics at the University of Uyo (Uniuyo), was convicted on two of the three charges brought against him by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The charges included publishing false election results and committing perjury.
He was acquitted on the first charge, which accused him of announcing false election results.
In his judgment, Justice Nkanang stated, “In respect of count one, the defendant is hereby discharged and acquitted. In respect of count two, the defendant is hereby found guilty of the offence of publication of false results, contrary to and punishable under Section 123(4) of the Electoral Act 2010, as amended. For count three, the defendant is hereby found guilty of the offence of perjury under Section 119(1) of the Criminal Code Law of Akwa Ibom State. This is the judgment of this court in this case.”
The court sentenced Uduk to three years imprisonment on each of the two counts, with the sentences to run concurrently. The professor, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, revealed that he had been forcefully retired by the University of Uyo in 2020 due to the case. He pleaded for leniency, stating, “My services were terminated by the University of Uyo, and I was forcefully retired in 2020. Also, because of this case, my salary was stopped since 2020. So, I am appealing to this court to give me a soft landing.”
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The prosecution, led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Clement Onwuenwunor, argued that Uduk’s actions undermined the credibility of the electoral process. Onwuenwunor emphasized that the case, initiated by former INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner Mike Igini, was a significant step in holding electoral offenders accountable.
“This case relates to the 2019 general elections and not 2023. It was initiated by former INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner Mike Igini, with the support of the then chairman, against those who committed infractions against the system,” Onwuenwunor said. “It has taken us five years to prosecute Prof. Uduk for offences he committed against the state. The judgment is going to serve as a deterrent to others who may be engaged tomorrow by INEC to help ensure credibility in the electoral process but who turn around to sabotage it for selfish reasons.”
He further detailed Uduk’s misconduct, stating, “On March 10, 2019, he had earlier submitted a handwritten note detailing the incident at the election, how he was chased away from the collation centre, and that he was forced to announce the result. Less than 24 hours later, he generated another result, came up with the official final result, and declared a winner for the election. He returned a winner for an election where there was no collation at any level—no collation from the polling unit, no collation from the ward level, and none at the local government area level before it got to him as Returning Officer.”
Onwuenwunor also addressed why the beneficiary of the fraudulent election results was not prosecuted, explaining, “At the point of this trial, before this charge was filed, that particular beneficiary had been removed from office by virtue of the Court of Appeal judgment we tendered in this court. That made it difficult for us to do anything.”
Defence counsel George Ezeugwu, representing Uduk, indicated that they would review the judgment before deciding on further action. “We are not going to challenge the court till we sit to look at the judgment. We receive it in good faith. If it is worth proceeding from here on appeal, we will. If it is not worth it, it’s one of the cases we skip through the file and continue with others. The court has done justice. You mustn’t win all the time, and at the same time, even if you’re losing, you lose gallantly. We are going to get the judgment, study it, and take further actions if need be.”
The case highlights the ongoing efforts to address electoral malpractice in Nigeria and serves as a warning to individuals entrusted with upholding the integrity of the electoral process.
