BREAKING: Appeal Court Affirms Conviction of UNICAL Professor Ogban for Electoral Fraud in Akwa Ibom

The Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar, Cross River State, has upheld the conviction and three-year prison sentence handed to Professor Peter Ogban of the University of Calabar (UNICAL) for electoral fraud during the 2019 Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District election.

In a decisive ruling delivered on Wednesday, the appellate court affirmed the earlier judgement by the Akwa Ibom State High Court in Ikot Ekpene, which found Professor Ogban guilty of manipulating and announcing falsified results in favour of former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and current Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

The court strongly condemned Ogban’s actions, citing the serious consequences of such misconduct, especially from an academic tasked with protecting the integrity of the electoral process.

Ogban, a respected professor of Soil Physics, served as the returning officer during the 2019 senatorial election. Investigations by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) revealed that he altered the results to artificially boost Akpabio’s vote count at the expense of his opponent, Senator Christopher Ekpenyong of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who ultimately won the election after Akpabio’s defeat.

Despite the findings, Akpabio has consistently denied any involvement in the fraud.

Ogban’s conviction followed a thorough investigation by INEC under the leadership of then Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) Barrister Mike Igini. The commission’s probe led to the prosecution of two university professors—Ogban and Professor Ignatius Uduk—for tampering with election outcomes during the 2019 general election.

Earlier this year, in a related case, the Akwa Ibom State High Court in Uyo sentenced Professor Uduk of the University of Uyo to three years in prison for perjury and publishing false election results. Uduk, who served as the returning officer for the Essien Udim State Constituency election, was also fined N100,000.

His trial, which began in December 2020, faced numerous delays—ranging from legal representation changes to his courtroom collapse and a controversial request for the presiding judge’s recusal. Ironically, the case eventually returned to the same judge for continuation.

Despite his loss in 2019, Akpabio made a political comeback and returned to the Senate in 2023, where he now serves as Senate President.