Two aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi State, have pleaded with the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, to void and cancel the party’s governorship primary election held on April 11, 2023.
The duo, Realwan Akpanachi and Yahaya Seidu-Nuhu, in an Originating Summon filed by their Counsel, Mr Promise Ogbodu, dragged six of the contestants before the court as 1st to 6th Defendants, while APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were joined as 7th and 8th Defendants respectively, for what they called violation of the Electoral Act 2022 and the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).
The 1st to 6th respondents are: Abdulkareem Jamiu (Chief of Staff), Jibril Momoh (Account-General), Yakubu Okala (Auditor-General), Asiwaju Idris (Finance Commissioner), Salami Ozigi (Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs), and Ahmed Usman-Ododo (Auditor-General for Local Government Areas).
LEADERSHIP reports that the Plaintiffs pleaded with the Court to disqualify the 1st – 6th Defendants, whom they claimed were still political appointees/public servants at the time they contested the APC governorship primary election of April 11.
They asked the court to determine whether the 1st – 6th defendants “being political appointees/public officers currently in the service of the Kogi Government, can validly participate in the convention or congress of the All Progressives Congress for the purpose of vying for the nomination of APC’s Governorship Candidate for Nov 11 Governorship election.
“Whether having regard to S 84 (12) of the Electoral Act (2022) the 7th Respondent (APC) can validly nominate any of the 1st to 6th Respondents as her Candidate for the Kogi State Governorship Election in the face of their failure as political appointees/public servants, to resign from service of the Kogi State Government at the time of the primary election.”
The Plaintiffs also prayed the court to make a declaration, that “being political appointees/public officers currently in the service of the Kogi Government, the 1st to 6th respondents, cannot validly vie for the APC’s nomination as its Governorship Candidate, for the Kogi Election Governorship scheduled for Nov. 11.
“A declaration that the 7th Respondent cannot validly nominate any of the 1st to 6th Respondents as her Candidate for the Kogi State Governorship Election in the face of their failure as political appointees/public servants, to resign from service of the Kogi Government at the time of the primary election.
“An Order, disqualifying any of the 1st to 6th Respondents from seeking for the nomination of, and being nominated by the 7th Respondent as its Governorship Candidate for the Kogi Governorship Election, scheduled for Nov. 11.”
The Court, however, directed that a notice of hearing be immediately served on all the Respondents to appear before it on April 27 for the hearing of the originating summon filed by the Plaintiffs.
It could be recalled that one of the Respondents, Ahmed Usman-Ododo, had emerged winner of the Kogi APC Governorship Primary election after the other five Respondents and the Deputy Governor, Chief Edward Onoja, and one other stepped down for him.
According to Mr Patrick Obahiagbon, Secretary of the Kogi APC Primary Election 7-Member Committee, Ododo scored 78,704 votes to beat six other contestants for the party’s governorship ticket.
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