Court rejects PDP’s suit seeking Matawalle’s, Yari’s, Marafa’s, others’ disqualification

A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking the disqualification of Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming general election.

In a judgment yesterday, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the suit was incompetent, adding that it constituted an abuse of the process of the court.

Justice Ekwo, who upheld the preliminary objection raised by the defendants, held that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi to have instituted the suit.

The judge noted that the provision of Section 285 (14) (c) of the Constitution, which the plaintiff relied on to file the suit, could not avail them.

He also held that the plaintiff was not an aspirant in the APC primaries to give it the right to challenge the outcome of the party’s primaries, as envisaged under sections 84(14) and 152 of the Electoral Act, 2022.

Justice Ekwo added: “This means that there is no iota of law which supports this action.”

The judge further held that the suit was statue-barred, having been filed outside the 14 days allowed by the Constitution for the filing of pre-election cases.

Listed as defendants in the suit are: the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), APC, Matawalle, and his deputy, Mohammed Gusau Hassan.

Also named as defendants are: a former governor of the state, Abdulaziz Yari (who is vying for a senatorial seat), ex-lawmaker, Kabir Marafa, and all the senatorial, House of Representatives and House of Assembly candidates in the state.

The PDP had, among others, prayed the court for “an order nullifying the purported sponsorship and/or nomination of the third to 38th defendants by the APC (second defendant) to INEC for the 2023 general election into the respective positions of the elective offices in Zamfara”.

The party also prayed the court to restrain INEC from recognising APC and all its candidates in the February 25 and March 11 polls.

(Nation)