•You must deliver Nasarawa to ex-Lagos governor, Sule tells council chairmen, others
Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by an Abuja-based lawyer, Osigwe Momoh, seeking to disqualify the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, over the party’s Muslim-Muslim ticket for the February 25 election.
In a judgment yesterday, Justice Ahmed Mohammed held that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi to have approached the court on the matter.
Justice Mohammed held that by failing to show that he is a member of the APC or that he participated in the primary election that produced Asiwaju Tinubu and his running mate, Senator Kashim Shettima, as the party’s candidates, the plaintiff lacked the legal capacity to query their nomination.
The judge, who upheld the preliminary objection filed by the APC and Asiwaju Tinubu, held that the lack of locus standi on the part of the plaintiff robbed the court of the jurisdiction to hear the suit.
Momoh had stated, in a supporting affidavit, that the APC has a duty, in nominating a joint ticket for the presidential and vice presidential candidate, owes a constitutional duty to uphold the principles of social justice, equity, national cohesion and unity of Nigeria.
He averred that the nomination of Muslims as the presidential and vice presidential candidates in a country with diverse religious inclinations was against the spirit of national cohesion, integration and unity.
The plaintiff claimed that the law does not permit APC to take actions that undermine social justice, equity and unity, adding that the party is not qualified to present candidates of the same faith.
Momoh said the defendants – APC, Tinubu and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) – “are under a constitutional duty to ensure that the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall not be governed, nor shall any persons or group of persons take control of the Government of Nigeria or any part thereof except in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution”.
He added: “The nomination of presidential and vice presidential candidate of the APC, being persons of the same religious faith, is exclusionary, divisive and capable of polarising the country along religious lines and it runs counter to the sacrosanct principles of social justice.”
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Also, Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule has urged the chairmen of the local government areas, overseers of development areas and all APC candidates and party officials in the state to ensure that Asiwaju Tinubu gets 95 per cent of the votes cast in the state.
The governor spoke during a meeting with the party executives, local government chairmen, and other party at the Government House yesterday in Lafia, the state capital.
He said: “Let us work hard as if we are not winning. That is the way we will work. We should get up even if we are 100 per cent sure that we are going to win this. Let us work as if we are not winning.
“At the end of the day, if you are winning with 90 per cent, let us see you winning with 95 per cent. I think that is the attitude I want us to get out of this place with, rather than all these grudges. Let’s go out and win the election first. It is very important to understand the direction we are going.”
Sule urged the party chiefs to work with unity of purpose and jettison acts capable of causing disunity within APC.
“I want to call on you the cordial relationship that must exist between the party and the council and the candidates as well as chairmen, overseers and everyone inclusive.
“If we don’t have that, if we continue to have these grudges and rumours, it will not augur well for us. We must ensure all APC candidates win the next elections, despite whatever differences,” he said.
The governor announced the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the state on February 4, as part of activities marking the nationwide campaign rally of Asiwaju Tinubu.