• Enugu West LP candidate’s substitution reversed
A Federal High Court in Abuja has voided the nomination of a House of Representatives member, Chris Azubogu, as the senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for Anambra South Senatorial District in next year’s election.
Azubogu is a member of the House of Representatives, representing Nnewi North/ Nnewi South/ Ekwusigo Federal Constituency on Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) platform.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a judgment yesterday, held that Azubogu was still a member of PDP when, in June this year, he participated in the primary election held by APGA for Anambra South Senatorial District.
Justice Ekwo ordered that Ben Nwankwo’s name be submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the lawful candidate of APGA for the senatorial district.
He restrained Azubogu from further parading himself as APGA’s candidate for the senatorial district.
The judgment was on the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/909/2022, filed by Nwankwo, who argued, among others, that Azubogu was unlawfully nominated.
Justice Ekwo held that Azubogu violated sections 65 and 68 of the constitution.
The judge upheld the plaintiff’s contention that Azubogu ought to have resigned, defected or cross carpeted from PDP to APGA before he could lawfully qualify to participate in the primary of another political party.
Justice Ekwo held that Azubogu ought to have relinquished the seat if he had actually resigned his membership, defected from PDP to APGA or another political party.
He further held that without complying with the mandatory sections 65 and 68 of the 1999 Constitution and Article 27 of the APGA guidelines for primary election for 2022, there was no way Azubogu could have lawfully participated in any primary election of any party other than that of the PDP.
Justice Ekwo found that as at June 1, when APGA conducted its primary election, Azubogu was not qualified to participate.
He held that any action taken in contravention or breach of the 1999 Constitution was unconstitutional, null and void, adding that Azubogu, having not been a member of APGA at the time he purportedly stood for the primary election of the party, could not be lawfully nominated by APGA.
In another judgment yesterday, Justice Ekwo reversed the unlawful substitution of Chukwuma Amadi as the candidate of the Labour Party (LP) for Enugu West Senatorial District.
The judge held that Amadi remained the candidate of the party unless he either withdrew his candidacy or in the event of death.
The judgment was on the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1194/2022 filed by Amadi to challenge his purported substitution by the LP.
Justice Ekwo ordered the removal of Uchenna Ekwe, who was unlawfully nominated by the party in the place of Amadi.
Justice Ekwo invoked sections 29, 31, 32, 33 and 34 of the Electoral Act to nullify the substitution of the plaintiff.
The judge held that by Section 33 of the Electoral Act, 2022, political parties were not allowed to change or substitute their candidates, whose names had been submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under Section 29 of the Act, except in the case of death or withdrawal by the candidate.
He said: “I find that the plaintiff is neither dead nor had withdrawn his candidature as the senatorial candidate of the Labour Party for Enugu West Senatorial District in the 2023 general election.
“Having so found, I state that this case is not about the primary election of the Labour Party that produced Uchenna Ekwe, but about whether or not, Amadi, the plaintiff in this case, withdrew his candidature after having won the primary election that produced him for the same party”, he said.
The judge, therefore, dismissed the argument of Labour Party and Uchenna Ekwe that the plaintiff had no locus standi pursuant to Section 84 of the Electoral Act, 2022 because he was not an aspirant in the second primary election that produced Ekwe.
Justice Ekwo ordered Ekwe to henceforth, desist from parading himself as a candidate of LP in the coming election and the party from dealing with him in the capacity.
The judge added: “I will say that Ekwe has been duped by those who deceived him that there can be another primary election for Enugu West Senatorial District when Amadi was neither dead nor had withdrawn as a candidate.
“It is clear that those who contrived the purported letter of withdrawal by Amadi merely deceived Ekwe and nothing more.
“It is the law in Section 33 of the Electoral Act, 2022 that a political party shall not be allowed to change or substitute its candidate whose name has been submitted under Section 29 of the Act except in the case of death or withdrawal,” the judge said.
