BREAKING: Tribunal Missed The Point – New Twist As Appeal Court Says Candidates’ Nomination Can Be Contested As Pre-election, Post-election (DETAILS)

BREAKING: Tribunal Missed The Point – New Twist As Appeal Court Says Candidates’ Nomination Can Be Contested As Pre-election, Post-election (DETAILS)

Yesterday, the Court of Appeal in Abuja clarified that the nomination of candidates can be a matter for consideration either before or after an election, especially if contested by a candidate from a different party. The court emphasized that this was the crucial point overlooked by the lower court (Tribunal).

Consequently, the election of Senator Simon Mwadkon, who serves as the Senate Minority Leader representing Plateau North, was invalidated.

Initially, the election petition tribunal in Jos had affirmed Mwadkon’s election and dismissed the petitions brought forth by Mr. Chris Giwa of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Mr. Gyang Zi of the Labour Party (LP). However, both Giwa and Zi appealed the decision.

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During the judgment delivered yesterday in Abuja, the Judge expressed regret for not being able to read the full content of the judgment. She skipped over the particulars of the petition and the reliefs sought at the tribunal, noting that all involved parties were already familiar with them, as they were detailed in the full judgment provided to all parties.

The Judge clarified that the main issue at hand was whether the second respondent was rightfully declared the winner in line with the law by the tribunal. She pointed out that Section 84(14) was the basis for this determination, and it hinged on the first ground (structure).

She stated that the court thoroughly examined the matter of the PDP’s structure and identified a misunderstanding regarding the issue of qualification. In her assessment, given the court’s findings, the appeal was successful.

Consequently, she nullified the election and called for a rerun within 90 days. She also noted that, in her opinion, the court’s directive for the PDP to hold a fresh congress was not fully adhered to, as 12 Local Government Areas did not participate in the congress.

She concurred with the appellants’ assertion that the party lacked a valid structure and could not legitimately claim to have nominated the second respondent for the election.

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“On this issue, I agree with learned senior counsel that upon nothing, nothing can stand. To avoid anarchy, I agree with the appellants that the court must protect an order of another court.

“Nomination of candidates can be a pre-election as well as post-election if it’s contested by another candidate of a different party. This is where the Tribunal missed the point.

“Section 134(1) is where the appellants had the locus Standi to file its appeal though the third respondent has the right to nominate candidates, it cannot do that within its whims and caprices,” she said.

Ordinarily, it should be a three-man panel of judges but only two were present as the third judge was said to be ill. Justice Mustapha Muhammed, who was absent also agreed with the judgement.

The court also nullified the election of Mus Agah representing Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency on the same ground.

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