Nigeria, Feb. 27 -- Timipre Sylva, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, has closed his case in the petition seeking to overturn Governor Douye Diri's victory during last November's election in the state.

Nigeria's electoral commission, INEC, had declared Mr Diri, who was the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), winner of the contest.

But Mr Sylva, a one-time governor of Bayelsa State and immediate-past Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, asked the Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja to nullify Mr Diri's victory.

Mr Sylva and his Party, the APC, called 52 witnesses to substantiate allegations of electoral malpractices they levelled ...