From Victor Osula, Abuja
A court in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital and another in Birnin-Kebbi, capital of Kebbi State on Wednesday stopped President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, and Senator Adamu Aliero, respectively, from contesting the 2023 poll. By this ruling the Senate President, Lawan has again lost his bid to return to the upper chamber on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Aliero, one-time governor of Kebbi State on the platform of the PDP before he defected to the APC and defected back to the PDP early in 2022, had his election nullified for the Kebbi Central Senatorial District.
According to the Federal High Court sitting in Damaturu, Yobe State that Lawan was not the valid APC candidate.
The court declared Bashir Machina as the candidate of the APC for Yobe North Senatorial District.
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had left the space for Yobe North Senatorial District vacant when the Commission published the list of candidates for the Presidential and National Assembly polls holding on February 25, 2023.
For Senator Adamu Aliero, the judgement delivered by Justice Babagana Ashigar of the Federal High Court sitting in Birnin-Kebbi, Kebbi State, nullified his election of as the candidate for Kebbi Central Senatorial District 2023 election.
Ashigar also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to substitute Aliero’s name with that of Haruna Saidu.
The Judge said the pronouncement was because Aliero was not validly elected in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
According to Justice Ashigar: “The court nullified the election following the primary election conducted in the state by the PDP in May which was marred by irregularities and the PDP did not give a fair hearing to Haruna Saidu following a petition on allegation of forged signatures.
“The court held that he was not served with a copy of the petition brought against him. INEC unlawfully excluded the plaintiff’s name (Saidu) from the primary participated by Aliero when he had won the first primary.
“The primary that produced Aliero was a nullity.”
