The Court of Appeal, Abuja, on Friday afternoon, dismissed the appeal by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), seeking the disqualification of Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and his deputy, Kassim Shettima, in the February 25 election.
A three-member panel presided over by Justice James Abundaga, in a unanimous decision, stated that the PDP failed to establish that it had a legal basis (locus standi) to enforce the case.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the PDP, in an appeal marked: CA/ABJ/CV/108/2023, has asked the appeal court to reverse the January 13 judgment delivered by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja which dismissed the suit stated that PDP does not have a legal basis to make such demands.
While the PDP is the petitioner, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), APC, Messrs. Tinubu and Shettima are the respondents in the appeal.
The PDP, in a suit filed on July 28, 2022, challenged the validity of the Tinubu/Shettima ticket for the 2023 presidential election.
It argued that the nomination of Mr. Shettima as a running mate had violated the provisions of section 29(1), 33, 35 and 841)(2)} of the Electoral Act, 2022 (as amended), demanding that Shettima have a second nomination .
He claimed that when Mr. Shettima was nominated as the vice-presidential candidate, he had not resigned or withdrawn from his nomination as Borno Central senatorial candidate.
The party insists that the nomination of Mr. Shettima as the vice-presidential candidate, as well as the candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial seat, is against the law.
The PDP, which requested the disqualification of the APC, Mr. Tinubu and Mr. Shettima from contesting the presidential election scheduled for February 25, equally asked the court to order the nullification of their candidacy.
It further asked the court for an order forcing INEC to remove its name from its list of nominated or sponsored candidates eligible to contest the election.
The defendants, in their preliminary objection, asked the court to dismiss the suit for lack of jurisdiction.
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He asserted that the plaintiff had no legal basis to pursue the case, which would have challenged the decision of the APC and the nomination of candidates for the election, which was within the confines of the party’s internal affairs and thus, unfair.
Delivering the lead judgement, Justice Abundaga, who agreed with the submission of the lawyers for the respondents, including Thomas Ojo of Lateef Fagbemi and Co, described the PDP as a busy body, which dabbled into problems that are internal affairs of the APC.
Judge Abundaga said the trial court was right that the PDP failed to establish a legal basis.
“The petitioner, having failed to declare locus standi, this appeal fails and is dismissed,” he said and affirmed the high court’s verdict.
The judge also awarded N5 million in costs to the plaintiff’s lawyer, JO Olotu.
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