- Nullifies His Participation In The Election Over 'Ghost' Primary
By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief)
The nation's apex court, the Supreme Court of Nigeria, on Tuesday morning, nullified the participation of Senator Andy Uba as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Saturday November 6, 2021 governorship election in Anambra State.
Delivering the judgement on Tuesday April 26, 2022, just barely six months after the Anambra governorship poll, the apex court upheld the February 23, 2022 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the December 20, 2021 judgment by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
In a judgement held by a five-man panel of the court, the Supreme Court ruled that the APC breached its party guidelines for the conduct of the controversial primary purportedly held on June 26, 2021.
The court said the APC failed to conduct a valid primary from which one of its governorship aspirant, Senator Andy Uba, was declared winner of the non-existent primary led by the Ogun state governor, Adedapo Abiodun.
Earlier, the Federal High Court in Abuja, in December 2021, set aside the candidacy of Andy Uba as flagbearer of the APC in the Anambra State governorship poll.
The presiding Judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, while delivering judgment held that Senator Uba was never a candidate in the poll having emerged from an illegally conducted primary election by the APC.
Justice Ekwo also held that the plaintiff, George Moghalu, the Managing Director of Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) succeeded in proving that the APC did not conduct a valid primary election which Senator Uba claimed to have won as the party’s flag bearer in the November 6, 2021 election.
The court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to delete Uba’s name from its record as a candidate in the election. It also ordered the APC to refund to the plaintiff (Chief George Muoghalu) N22.5 million he paid for expression of interest and nomination forms since the party failed to conduct a valid primary.
The November 6 election was eventually won by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, who is a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
He was inaugurated as governor on Thursday March 17, 2022.
Senator Andy Uba had emerged as the APC's candidate at a primary election purportedly held on June 26, 2021.
Chief Moghalu urged the court to determine whether a political party that fails to comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act (2010), the party’s constitution and its guideline, can validly field a candidate for the election.
The plaintiff’s lawyer, Chris Uche, who is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), informed the court that his client’s grouse was that the “so-called primary election”, which produced Senator Uba as APC’s candidate for the Anambra governorship poll, breached the Electoral Act and the APC guidelines for the conduct of the exercise.
In his arguments, Chris Uche referenced a report by officials of the INEC which allegedly declared that the primary election did not take place up till 5.30 p.m. when its officials left the primary election venue.
This report, according to the plaintiff’s lawyer, corroborates his client’s claim that the APC did not hold a valid primary in Anambra State.
He prayed the court to declare that, by virtue of the APC’s alleged non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010 and the party’s regulations and guidelines in the conduct of its primary in Anambra State, Uba “is not a candidate at the said 6th November 2021 gubernatorial election or at any subsequent postponement.”
The plaintiff equally asked the court to declare that the APC was bound to comply with all the relevant legal provisions in the conduct of its primary election after having demanded and received N22.5 million from him and other 13 aspirants.
He also asked the court to, among others, declare that having allegedly failed to comply with the relevant applicable laws, the APC had no candidate for the governorship election.
He, therefore, urged the court to order the party to refund the N22.5 million he paid for the expression of interest and nomination forms.
Furthermore, he asked the court to grant a perpetual injunction to restrain Senator Uba from parading himself as the candidate of the APC in that election.
“An order of mandatory injunction compelling INEC to delist the APC and Uba from the list of political parties and candidates for the election,” Moghalu added.
He urged the court to grant his client’s prayers, including nullifying the primary election and ordering a fresh one or making any order the court considered to be necessary.
However, Senator Andy Uba's defence team led by another Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mahmud Malami, argued that the plaintiff failed to establish that a valid primary was not held.
They also contended that the plaintiff lacked the right to institute the suit to challenge a primary he did not participate in. They urged the court to decline jurisdiction and dismiss the suit.
Similarly, the APC, through its lawyer, Vincent Otaokpokpo, urged the court to dismiss the case or convert the suit to one that would require parties to lead oral evidence by calling witnesses. (Additional report from Premium Times). NNL.
