Latest news » politics » Court Upholds Dapo Abiodun As APC Guber Candidate
Court Upholds Dapo Abiodun As APC Guber Candidate
Dapo Abiodun
An FCT High Court, Apo on Thursday upheld the candidacy of Adedapo
Abiodun as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress
for Ogun State in the Saturday governorship election.
The court dismissed the suit filed by an APC member in the state,
AbdulRafiu Baruwa, praying the court to disqualify the APC candidate on
the ground that he supplied false information to INEC in his Form CF
001.
Baruwa in the suit had asked Justice Olukayode Adeniyi to
disqualify Abiodun from the governorship race for alleged concealment
and deliberate refusal to supply details of his educational
qualifications to INEC as require by law so as to escape punishment for
infringement on the law.
The plaintiff claimed that APC governorship candidate claimed in
2015 senatorial election form for Ogun East to have graduated from the
University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowi University, but in the 2019
governorship form, the candidate was said to have claimed to possess
only secondary school education.
Plaintiff asserted that Abiodun deliberately concealed his
university education because of his alleged non participation in the
mandatory national youth service scheme for Nigerians who are 30 years
and below as at the time if graduation.
He also sought another order of the court to replace Abiodun with
one Jimi Lawal who was said to have come second in the primary election
conducted by APC for nomination of governorship candidate for Ogun
State.
Delivering judgment, Justice Olukayode Adeniyi, held that Section
177 of the 1999 Constitution can not be invoked to disqualify the APC
candidate because participation in the NYSC scheme is not a condition
for qualification for governorship election.
He also held that the failure to include university education in
the Form CF 001 submitted to INEC by Abiodun cannot be used to nullify
his nomination because of the provision of the law that a minimum
qualification of secondary school is required.
Justice Adeniyi said that there was no consequences for Abiodun
with his refusal to give details of his university education, adding
that the case of the plaintiff is an academic exercise which has no
bearing with qualifications for governorship election under the
constitution of the country.
The judge, therefore, held that the case of the plaintiff was unmeritorious and consequently dismissed it.
Among others, Justice Adeniyi held that the Abuja high Court has
jurisdiction to entertain the suit because the fact that brought about
the case all emanated in Abuja while the suit was not statute Bar as
claimed by the defendants. (NAN)
FOR MORE DETAILS FELLOW US|||||||
Twitter: @JamTruckBlog
Facebook: @JamTruckBlog
Whatsapp: @+2347066255344
EMAIL: afrikvibe@gmail.com
Comments