BEVERLY HILLS, November 27, (THEWILL) – Kogi State Governor, Idris Wada and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have asked a Federal High Court in Abuja to declare the governor, who is the PDP candidate in the inconclusive governorship election, winner of the poll.
The election was conducted last Saturday, November 21, 2015.
In a suit filed on their behalf by Chief Chris Uche, SAN, Wada said that in view of the death of the All Progressive Congress’ candidate, Abubkar Audu, he should be declared the winner of the botched election being the only surviving candidate with the majority of lawful votes cast at the Kogi State Governorship election held on 21st November 2015.
He also asked the court to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue him with a Certificate of Return.
INEC, the Attorney General of the Federation and the APC are joined as the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants respectively.
In the main, the plaintiffs also filed another application praying the court to restrain INEC from conducting the December 5th supplementary election.
Wada also asked the court to issue an order of injunction restraining APC from organizing or holding a fresh primary election for the purpose of any supplementary or other election for the Kogi State governorship election 2015.
The governor also asked the court to declare that APC can not organize and hold a fresh primary election for the purpose of the supplementary election, having regard to the immutable statutory timeliness provided by enabling sections of the Electoral Act 2010 and the INEC timetable for Kogi Governorship election.
The plaintiffs asked the court to declare that the AGF was not competent to issue directives to INEC to allow APC to substitute its candidate for the Kogi governorship election after the commencement of the election, and that such directives are null and void for inconsistency with the provisions of the consitituion.
They also asked the court to hold that APC could not lawfully nominate a candidate for the supplementary governorship election slated for the 5th day of December 2015, without a valid and legally cognizable primary election of the APC conducted within the mandatory timeliness specified by the Electroal Act.
Wada and PDP further asked the court to declare that, “having regards to the provisions of Section 141 of the Electoral Act, 2010, voted scored by a candidate who died during an election cannot be inherited by or transferred to a person who was not a candidate at the said election and who did not participate in all stages of such election, for the purpose of concluding such election.
A 36-paragraph affidavit deposed to by the PDP State Collation Agent for the governorship election conducted in Kogi State, Mr Joe Agada.
He stated thus: “That with the demise of APC’s candidate, the two leading candidates became Wada with 199,514 votes and and that of the Labour Party with 8, 756 votes.
“That I know as a fact that INEC on this basis ought to declare the Wada the winner of the governorship election of 21st November 2015, being the only surviving candidate with the highest number of votes and scoring 25 per cent of the votes in all the Local Government Areas of the State.”
The case has yet not been assigned to any judge.
Last Thursday, APC’s governorship candidate, late Abubakar Audu’s running mate, James Faleke wrote to the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu asking that he be declared the winner of the inconclusive election.
In a letter written by his lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, Faleke said that the only option opened to INEC is to declare him the governor-elect.
Olanipekun wrote, “What INEC should do is to obey, respect and comply with the letters, spirit, intendment and tenor of the constitution by not only delcaring APC. As the winner of the election, but by also declaring our client as the Governor-elect.”
He said that INEC’s directive to APC to conduct a new primary to select a candidate to replace Audu was, “unfounded, both legally and constitutionally.
“It can also not ne reasonably or rationally defended.”
He drew the attention of the INEC chairman to the provision of section 68(1) and (c) of the Electoral Act to the effect that any result declared by Returning Officer shall be final and binding, and can only be reviewwed or upturned by an election tribunal.
Excerpts from the letter read: “In law and logic, no new candidate can inherit or be a beneficiary of the votes already cast, counted and declared by INEC before that candidate was nominated and purportedly sponsored.
“Assuming without conceding that INEC is even right to order a supplementary election, the votes already cast, counted and declared on Saturday and Sunday, 21st and 22nd November, 2015 were voted for the joint constitutional ticket of Abubakar Audu and our client.
“Therefore, no new or supplementary candidate can hijack, aggregate, appropriate or inherit the said votes.
“Assuming further, without conceding, that supplementary election in 91 polling units can hold as being suggested by INEC, it is our client who should be the automatic candidate of the party, since APC cannot conduct primary election for the supplementary election in 91 polling units.”
Olanipekun told the INEC Chairman that the commission was under obligation to declare Faleke the governor-elect.
“Any attempt to conduct any supplementary election in any unit whatsoever and howsoever will amount to INEC breaching and flouting the constitution and our client would definitely challenge it,” he threatened.
A similar letter was written to the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Oyegun.
In the letter to Oyegun, Olanipekun said: “Our client enjoins the APC not only to support him at actualizing the mandate already given to the party under the joint ticket of himself and Audu, but to also distance itself from the ‘Greek gift’ offer being made by INEC, to wit, that it is allowing the APC to conduct a fresh primary election to nominate a candidate for a supplementary election in 91 polling units, where only about 25,000 PVCs are available, whereas the APC is already leading, by the announced results, with over 40.000 voted.”
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