Primary: Court Affirms Niger NNPP Guber Candidate Victory

The judge of the Federal High Court (FHC) sitting in Minna, Justice Aminu Garba, has affirmed the June 6, 2022, NNPP primary election that produced Ibrahim Yahaya Sokodeke as the party’s governorship candidate for Niger State in the 2023 general elections.

He delivered his judgment on Friday evening following on the premise that the plaintiff, Jibrin Madugu Jibrin, failed to prove his case before the court.

Justice Aminu Garba had earlier turned down the application of the plaintiff for an extension of time to file better and further affidavits before determining the substantive case .

The court held that by allowing parties in the case to file and counter-file processes, it would not be able to dispose of the case within the statutory period allowed by the constitution to determine the suit.

On the preliminary objection of the first and second defendants, Ibrahim Sakodeke and NNPP’s counsel challenging the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the case, Justice Garba agreed with the counsel that the plaintiff’s allegation on the eligibility of Sokodeke to participate in the primary election cannot be resolved by affidavit evidence.

Justice Garba further held that the plaintiff’s case by its nature contains contentious facts which were not suitable to commence by originating summons and therefore, ruled that the first and second defendants, Ibrahim Sokodeke and NNPP preliminary objections succeeded and faulted the mode of commencement as incompetent.

On the substantive matter, the court also held that the plaintiff, Jibrin Madugu, failed to prove that Sokodeke did not qualify to contest the NNPP primary election and to establish voting irregularities as well as the disenfranchisement of lawful delegates during the June 6, 2022, primary election of the party.

Justice Garba then held that the plaintiff failed to establish his claims which will entitle him the reliefs sought in his originating summon before the court.