Judge Denies Sacking Dr Alex Otti as Abia Governor Elect
A Federal High Court has declined to nullify the candidature of Abia Governor-elect Dr Alex Otti. However, the court ruled that the election of Labour Party (LP) candidates in Kano State who participated in the 2023 General Election was invalid.
Court Challenges and Respondents
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the lawsuit was instituted by a plaintiff, Mr Ibrahim Haruna-Ibrahim. He filed an application asking the court to revoke and set aside the certificates of return issued to all LP candidates declared winners in Kano State and across the remaining 35 states of the Federation, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja.
As reported by NAN, the designated respondents in the lawsuit are the Labour Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Jurisdiction and Electoral Act Provisions
In his ruling, Justice Muhammad Nasir-Yunusa stated that the candidates who ran in Abia State’s 2023 general election were not parties before his court. Addressing the court’s jurisdiction regarding certificates of return, the judge noted:
blockquote>”This court lacks jurisdiction to issue an order for a certificate of return.”
Justice Nasir-Yunusa further explained his position regarding affected candidates outside the immediate suit, stating:
blockquote>”They are free to seek redress in the appropriate Division of the court,”
Detailing the statutory requirements governing political parties, the judge explained that INEC was required by section 77(3) of the Electoral Act 2022 to insist on receiving the registered members of the first respondent (Labour Party) and other political parties 30 days before the conduct of their primary election.
According to that statutory provision, a political party that has failed to comply with Section 77(2)(3) of the Electoral Act 2022 cannot be lawfully declared the winner of an election.
Addressing the outcome for the Kano State primaries, Justice Nasir-Yunusa concluded:
blockquote>”The Kano LP primary election was declared null and void by the court.”
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