BEVERLY HILLS, June 23, (THEWILL) -A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Friday, dismissed a suit filed by Umar Dahiru, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeking to remove Aminu Tambuwal as the governor of Sokoto state.
Dahiru had filed the suit challenging the legality of the December 4, 2014 primary election which produced Tambuwal as the standard-bearer of the party but Gabriel Kolawole, the presiding judge, dismissed the suit for lacking merit.
Dahiru instituted the suit against the APC, Tambuwal and INEC, praying for an order of the court to nullify and set aside the Sokoto State APC primary election of 2014, however, Kolawale held that Dahiru failed to prove his claims that the APC primary elections in 2014, were conducted in violation of the party’s guidelines and constitution.
“The plaintiff did not pinpoint in specific terms in what ways and manner the APC did not comply with its guidelines and constitution,” he said, delivering judgment on the matter after listening to final arguments from counsel involved in the suit.
In his argument, counsel to Dahiru, Roland Otaru (SAN), urged the court to nullify the primary election that produced Tambuwal as candidate for the 2015 governorship election in the state on the grounds that the constitution of the APC, the APC guidelines on the primary elections and the Electoral Act 2010 were “violently violated” in the conduct of the primary election.
The counsel maintained that the primary election was conducted in breach of the relevant rules since verification and accreditation of delegates were not done in spite of the fact that they were mandatory and urged the court to take a judicial notice of the list containing the names of the delegates who participated in the primary election and the report of the APC.
On his part, Jubrin Okutepa (SAN), counsel to the APC, asked the court to dismiss Dahiru’s case on the grounds that his claims were inconsistent as he drew the court’s attention to the affidavit evidence of Dahiru prepared in 2015, where he admitted that accreditation of delegates was carried out.
He said it was only in a further affidavit prepared in 2017, that he recanted his earlier position and said that accreditation was not carried out arguing that a litigant must be consistent in his claim.
Sunday Ameh (SAN), counsel to Tambuwal who aligned himself with the submission of Okutepa said it was too late for Dahiru who admitted that there was accreditation in 2015 to make a U-turn in 2017.
Ameh further argued that the period for primary election has expired in line with the 1999 Constitution, and as such, Dahiru’s case has become an academic exercise.
About the Author
