***Appeal Court paves the way for party to field candidates

The Court of Appeal in Abuja Thursday set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which affirmed the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to bar the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) from fielding candidates in the general election in Zamfara State.

Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, had in a judgment delivered on January 25, 2019, held that INEC was right to have delisted the names of candidates APC presented for the elections.

She stated that the APC failed to conduct a valid primary within the period scheduled by the electoral body.

But three-man panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Abdul Aboki, held that the trial court lacked the jurisdiction to have entertained the suit, adding that it was an abuse of court process.

He stressed that the suit at the Federal High Court was filed out of time and that the Electoral Act provides for 14 days to institute a suit after the cause of action had arisen, the suit was filed 15 days after, and therefore rendered the action incompetent.

After listening to the arguments of M. A. Maagaji SAN, who lead other senior lawyers, the court held:

“The cross-appeal partly succeeds on the issue of jurisdiction. The suit of the 1st cross-respondent in suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/1279/2018 between the All Progressives Congress vs Independent National Electoral Commission and Others is hereby struck out for lack or want of jurisdiction on the part of the lower court.

“The judgment of the lower court is hereby set aside. There shall be no order as to costs.”

On many occasions INEC had insisted that the APC Zamfara State would not field candidates for the 2019 general election.

In a leaked memo, the commission informed the ruling APC that it would not be allowed to field candidates for elective positions in Zamfara in the 2019 elections.

Its acting Secretary, Mr. Okechukwe Ndeche, in a letter to the APC said that the party was barred from fielding candidates for governorship, National Assembly and state assembly elections.

The commission said this was because APC failed to comply with Sections 87 and 31 of the Electoral Act of 2010.

Parties, according to the Act, were expected to comply with the timetable and schedule of INEC, which says that the conduct of primaries must be held between August 18 and October 7.

INEC said it received reports from its Zamfara office indicating that no primaries were conducted in the state, “notwithstanding that our officials were fully mobilised and deployed.”

The APC National Chairman, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, later responded to INEC in a statement and said that the party had already arrived at a consensus before the deadline.

Oshiomhole said that following the high level of friction, disagreements and threats of violence by various political camps before the primaries, all the aspirants met at City King Hotel, Gusau, to find a truce.

He said: “After hours of intense horse-trading, a consensus was reached within the spirit and context of the Electoral Act and the constitution of our party.

“This was done in strict compliance with Section 87 (6) of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended).”

He said that the claim by INEC that no primaries were conducted could only be referring to its officials’ observation that actual voting did not take place.

The APC chairman said that conduct of primaries was not the only mode prescribed for producing candidates in the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended).

“We, therefore, affirm that indeed, primaries took place in Zamfara State,” Oshiomhole said.

The party chairman also noted that PDP had similar issues in Kano State and wondered why INEC did not bar the opposition party from fielding candidates.

https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2019/02/22/zamfara-apc-becomes-beneficiary-of-postponed-elections/amp/

Good Development....

Here is a brief background to the Zamfara APC case..

Recall that INEC had declined to accept APC candidates in Zamfara because, according to the commission, the party failed to meet the deadline for holding primaries.

This gave rise to two different Court litigations. One at Zamfara State High Court while the second one was at FCT High Court Abuja.

On 25th of January 2019 precisely, the two courts issued conflicting rulings on whether the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) can accept candidates presented by the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Zamfara State elections in 2019.

In Zamfara State, a High Court sitting in Gusau, ruled that the governing APC actually conducted primaries in the state and should be allowed to present candidates for electoral contest.

An Abuja court, however, ruled otherwise.

The Zamfara court specifically directed INEC to accept candidates from the party for Zamfara States in the forthcoming elections.

https://www.nairaland.com/4983785/two-courts-issue-conflicting-judgments

Based on the above, I summarize as follows:

1. A High Court in Zamfara gave a judgement, ordering INEC to reverse its decision to ban APC from fielding its candidates.

2. A Federal High Court in Abuja same day gave a judgment ordering INEC not to accept the APC candidates.

3. INEC for reasons best known to it choose to obey the Abuja high court Judgement while ignoring the one given by the Zamfara state high Court.

https://www.nairaland.com/4994271/jubilation-zamfara-inec-removes-apc

4. However, the Appeal Court in Abuja yesterday set aside the judgement of the Federal high court Abuja which ruled that INEC acted within its powers by refusing to accept the list of candidates from the Zamfara State chapter of the APC.

https://www.nairaland.com/5038510/court-appeal-clears-zamfara-apc

5. In setting aside the Abuja judgement, the appeal court gave two major reasons......First they said the Abuja suit was filled out of time, the same reason that killed the chances of APC in Rivers. Secondly, they said the Abuja suit was an abuse of court process that it should not have been entertained in first place since a similar suit was already subsisting in Zamfara State high Court....

6. Thus from the forgoing, the only remaining judgement is the Zamfara State high court judgement that specifically asked INEC to allow APC Zamfara to field its candidate which up till today has not been appealed or Upturned. So, the APC Zamfara candidates are cleared now for the elections.

APC is evil! working so hard to change the tides of normalcy! if your guys have been laid aside and forbidden from participating in this polls, why can't you just let it be in respect of our very young and dear democracy!
so frigging desperate for power!

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Good news for us.

Na xo
Obodo adiro mma bu uru ndi nze

Although, I still prefer Sowore, or morghalu or hasheem or any other ordinary young educated person, but I dreamd last night that buhari win, even APC also will rule for 16 years, and my dreams always comes to pass

APC will still fail in Zamfara and by extension across Nigeria.

APC brought poverty & death and Nigerians say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

Buhari is going

We all knew this will happen

Very funny but true.

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I knew this was the major reasons for the postponement of the elections.
Rivers' might follow

Good for them

It's unfolding

The real reason for the postponement showing up.
We'd soon know

PLUS ONE...........

Good news for the people of Zamfara.

Nigeria will be great again.

Only brainwashed elements still support the terrorist organization called APC.

It has been their plan all along

hdgh

OK.

.


Which was one of Key Reasons APC wanted to force staggered elections!!

.

Their headache

Buhari really succeeded in turning Apc into an anti-democratic Party. If a ruling doesn’t favor them, they boycott due process and manipulate the system.





Bihari must go.

Who no like am can kill himself... Good morning and Sai APC

So pdpigz in zamfara has been praying and fasting for apc not to be allowed to contest? Is it because they know they can't win?

That was the major reason behind the postponement of the elections, take it or leave it.

Mission accomplished......... nonsense people!

*BREAKING NEWS*
*As part of PDP's plan to create more jobs, PDP is now recruiting ballot box snatchers who can run faster than bullets. Interested candidates should contact Dino,(Head of Thuggery Department). Salary is in US dollars and to be paid after the elections.

And oshiomole was crying fowl, that PDP were behind the postponement....it has become crystal clear that APC instigated the postponement , to allow the Zamfara issue to be resolved, and to allow them perfect their rigging plans....
There was a law abiding country !

The Dullard is going...

Meanwhile, currently in Kogi State, Yaya Bello through the respective Local Government Administrators has resorted to the usage of SARS to wantonly arrest PDP stalwarts and supporters who they believe could be a hinderance to their devilish plot. Currently, some of us are in hiding for no just reason. But for supporting PDP. Some of our leaders framed. Yaya is frustrated, having seen the great embarrassment awaiting him at the poll.

In my hiding, I am earnestly praying for a miserable death for all the security officers and others who volunteered to perverse the course of justice for a token
AMEN

PLEASE SAVE OUR SOUL from the DEMON, YAYA BELLO and HIS Agents