An Akwa Ibom state High Court 2 sitting in Ikot Ekpene, Thursday sentenced Professor Peter Ogban to three years imprisonment after he was found guilty of electoral fraud case leveled against him by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
INEC took Ogban to court on two count charge of fraudulently tampering with the election results in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC) during the 2019 General Election in Akwa Ibom North- West senatorial district.
Ogban, who acted as the Collation/Returning Officer during the National Assembly election, was standing trial for allegedly manipulating and falsifying the scores of election results in Oruk Anam and Etim Ekpo local government areas in favour of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
In his ruling, the presiding judge, Justice Augustine Odokwo, sentenced the accused to 36 months in correctional service and was told to pay a fine of N100,000 for count 2 and 1 respectively, after the accused had pleaded for leniency.
The accused, Prof. Ogban, had pleaded for mercy on the premise that he has dependants, including a 90-year- old mother to take care of, adding that he was a respectable member of his community and a very valuable and sought after lecturer in the Department of Soil Science, both in the University of Uyo and Calabar.
He said: “If I lose my source of income, it means all of my dependants I have mentioned will suffer, especially the condition of my aged mother.
“This is an eye opener for anyone who participates in local, state or national activities to do so with dexterity and not take anything for granted, to avoid an innocent person had been embarrassed.”
