A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has nullified the election of Abia State governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, and ordered him to vacate office immediately.

Justice Okon Abang asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue a certificate of return to Uche Ogah who contested against Ikpeazu for the People’s Democratic Party’s governorship ticket in December 2014.

Ogah had accused Ikpeazu’s of submitting false information in his tax clearance certificate to the party during the governorship primaries in the state.

Abang ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a certificate of return to Ogah as the duly elected governor of Abia.

He said the court relied on the Supreme Court decisions in the case of Obi vs INEC and Ameachi vs INEC to make the consequential order.

The court said that Ogah, a PDP gubernatorial aspirant in 2015 election in Abia, was entitled to the certificate of return in the election held in April 2015.

“It is hereby ordered that INEC, the third defendant should immediately issue certificate of return to Dr Samson Ogah as governor of Abia state in the election held in 2015 and restore to him all the entitlements as the elected governor of Abia.

“Dr Okezie Ikpeazu is hereby ordered to vacate office as governor of Abia immediately relying on the decision of the Supreme Court in INEC vs Obi,’’ he held.

Abang held that the tax clearance certificate and income tax receipts submitted by Ikpeazu were unknown to the law and made him ineligible to contest the poll.

He held that the 2011 tax clearance certificate and income tax receipt submitted to INEC before the 2014 PDP primaries contained false information.

The court said that Ikpeazu’s appointment letter as General Manager, Abia Passenger Integrated Scheme on July 18, 2011 spelt out his salary and entitlements.

[b] “Going by the appointment letter, Ikpeazu would have worked for Abia Passenger Integrated Scheme for five months 12 days.

“The earnings of the second defendant based on the letter of appointment by single calculation in 2011 for five months 12 days is N493 or N546, 669 if not assigned government vehicle.

“The tax payment submitted by the second defendant didn’t reflect this figure,’’ the court held.

Abang further held that the tax certificate indicated the gross earnings of Ikpeazu for 2011 to be N1.14 million and the income tax was assessed on this figure.

He also held that the date on the tax receipt filed by the governor was on a Saturday, adding that Saturday, even in Abia was a public holiday.

The court said that Ikpeazu did not file his tax clearance in 2011, 2012 and 2013 and that all payments he made preceding the 2014 primaries were made in one day and not as and when due.

Abang held that Ikpeazu perjured when he said that he had fulfilled all the requirements to contest the 2015 elections.

This, he said, was because he had failed to provide a tax clearance certificate that was known to the law.[/b]

He added that the governor was not qualified to be the candidate of the PDP in the primaries of 2014 and was also not qualified to be fielded as the candidate for the 2015 election.

He held that Ogah was the qualified candidate to contest as the candidate of the PDP for the 2015 election and his name ought to have been forwarded INEC as the PDP candidate.

He said that Ikpeazu did not win the PDP primaries as he was not eligible or qualified to contest the poll.
He also awarded N100, 000 cost in favour of the Ogah.

Culled From The Guardian :

http://m.guardian.ng/news/court-sacks-abia-governor/

More Details from Punch Newspaper:

The court held that Ikpeazu lied on oath by stating in the Form 8C001 that he had fulfilled all the requirements for qualification to the office of the Governor of Abia State when in actual fact, he failed to produce the evidence of regular payment of his personal income tax in the three years preceding the primary as required under Article 14(a) of the PDP Electoral Guidelines.

The court ruled that all votes credited to Ikpeazu in the primary by virtue of his non-qualification were wasted.

After disqualifying the governor as ineligible to contest the primary, the judge then made a consequential order removing Ikpeazu from office and declaring Ogah as the validly-elected governor of the state.

The judge, citing authorities of the Supreme Court in Obi Vs INEC, Amaechi Vs INEC, Gwede Vs INEC and most recently, Jev Vs Iyortom, held that the Federal High Court, not minding the provisions of Section 141 of the Electoral Act, could declare a candidate, who did not participate in all stages of the election, as winner.

Justice Abang held that the Supreme Court had clarified in the said authorities that Section 141 of the Electoral Act was only applicable to the election petitions tribunal and the Court of Appeal when sitting as the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal and that the provisions were not applicable to the Supreme Court and the state and Federal High Court in a pre-election case.

He stated, “The following consequential order is hereby made to give effect to the judgment of this court that:

“The plaintiff, Dr. Sampson Chukwu Ogah, is the candidate of the PDP in the 2015 governorship election in Abia State and is the person entitled to the Certificate of Return in the election to the office of the governor of Abia State of Nigeria in the election held on April 11, 2015.

“The third defendant, INEC, is hereby ordered to forthwith and immediately issue a Certificate of Return to the plaintiff, Dr. Sampson Chukwu Ogah, as the Governor of Abia State, Nigeria, for the election held on April 11, 2015, and restore to him all the entitlements as governor of Abia State.

[b] “Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu is hereby ordered to vacate the office as Governor of Abia State immediately, relying on the decisions of Supreme Court in Obi Vs INEC, Amaechi Vs INEC, Gwede Vs INEC and recently, which is the relevant authority that has interpreted Section 141 of the Electoral Act, in the case of Iyortom Vs NEC.”

Justice Abang faulted the argument as canvassed by the PDP, Ikpeazu and INEC in their responses to the suit to the effect that the issue of tax clearance was not part of qualifying or disqualifying requirements under sections 177 and 82 of the constitution.

The judge noted that an aspirant must first meet the qualifying factors under Section 31(5) and (6) of the Electoral Act to become his or her party’s candidate before such a person could be qualified as a candidate in the general elections under sections 177 and 82 of the Constitution.

He held that contrary to the defendants’ position, the provisions of sections 177 and 82 of the Constitution and 31(5) and (6) of the Electoral Act were not contradictory but complementary.

Justice Abang stated, “So, the issue under sections 177 and 82 of the Constitution are separate and distinct from the issues arising from section 31(5) and (6) of the Electoral Act as amended.

“I have not seen any conflict here. The second defendant must meet the requirements of Section 31 (5) and (6) of the Electoral Act as amended.

“The second defendant must meet the requirements of Section 31(5) and (6)of Electoral Act before presenting himself for the general elections before meeting the requirements of Section 177 of the Constitution. I so hold.

“Without complying with Article 14(a) of the PDP Electoral Guidelines, an aspirant cannot qualify to participate in the PDP primary election. I so hold.”[/b]

The court held that Ikpeazu was a perjurer for making the false information in the form submitted to INEC.

http://punchng.com/abia-pdp-backs-ikpeazu-court-sacks-gov/

Buhari’s Government is full of shitshit!

nemesis playing out everywhere.


back to yah shop
o ye ikpeazu

Lalasticlala.... Front page.

Pikin way no survive, no go survive.

Ikpazu, did not do his home work well. Too bad

Now that you still ve the right to appeal do what you can to survive. Or jst leave urself to fate as there is nothing you can really do when things start falling apart

Mmmmmh. This serious

odiks:
Mmmmmh. This serious

The Judgement is watertight based on Supreme Court decision BTW jev Vs Iyortom

Morning lalasticlala

I think the tax receipt is aba made just like oluwole. dey don done for your matter, abeg leave.

OlujobaSamuel:
I think the tax receipt is aba made just like oluwole. dey don done for your matter, abeg leave.

Na him oh

Mods front page oh.... To enlighten the people