Court Dismisses Ex-minister’s Suit Seeking To Disqualify Atiku, Tinubu

An appeal filed by the former Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, seeking to disqualify Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC as presidential candidates of their political parties has been dismissed by the Court of Appeal, Abuja.

Nwajiuba and the Rights for All International, a non-governmental organisation, had asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to cancel the processes that produced Tinubu and Abubakar as candidates of their political parties.

The suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/942/2022 and opposed by Babatunde Ogala on behalf of the APC and Bola Tinubu had as defendants the APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Other parties sued were the Attorney General of the Federation and the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Among others, the plaintiffs prayed for “a declaration that having regard to the clear, unambiguous and express provisions, spirit and tenor of Section 33(1) And (5) (C) of the Constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party 2017 as Amended, the Special National convention of the 2nd Defendant held on May 28 and 29, 2022 was not properly constituted as regards the composition of delegates who should attend and vote at the said convention and did not confer the convention the powers to elect the 4th Defendant as the Presidential candidate of the 2nd Defendant for the 2023 Presidential election.

“A declaration that all the votes cast in favour of the 3rd and 4th Defendants at the special convention of the 1st and 2nd Defendant held on June 6 and 7, 2022 and on May 28 and 29, 2022 respectively are illegal, null and void and of no effect whatsoever on the grounds of corruption, buying and selling of delegates votes and voter inducement.

“An order returning the 2nd Plaintiff as the duly elected and nominated presidential candidate of the 1st Defendant being that by operation of Section 90(3), the 2nd Plaintiff, Chukwuemeka Nwajuba is the only candidate out of the 10 contestants who polled votes at the 1st Defendants’ convention and whose source of the N100m is verified and complied with the electoral Act as contained in the print out of the names in the bank statement of over 1000 individual contributions in person.''

Handling the suit before him, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal high court dismissed it, on the grounds that the plaintiffs lack the legal rights to file the suit.

However, Nwajiuba appealed the verdict of the Federal high court.

Counsel to the APC, Ogala raised a preliminary objection, “that the suit at the lower court was not a pre-election matter as the appellant cannot be said to be a person covered by Section 285(14) a, b, c of the 1999 constitution being an NGO,” Ogala argued in the preliminary objection.

Delivering judgment, the appellate court again dismissed the suit and awarded N100,000 against the appellants in favour of Tinubu and Atiku.

Upholding the verdict of the lower court, the appeal court ruled that, “the appeal is lacking in merit and the appellant only sought to revive the dissolved NGO through the back door, the counsel to the Appellant who is also a trustee of the NGO should live with the same in sober reflections.”

“The appellant is not clothed with locus as can be gleaned from Section 285(14) a, b, and c of the 1999 constitution.

“The appellant is a busybody and a meddlesome interloper.

“The appellate court upheld the verdict of the trial court and awarded N100,000 against the appellants in the favor of Tinubu and Atiku.

“Judgment of the lower court delivered on December 15, 2022, is affirmed.”