Appeal Court sacks Senate minority leader, orders rerun

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has nullified the victory of the Senate Minority Leader, Simon Mwadkwon, in the February 25 senatorial election in the Plateau North Senatorial District.

The Appeal Court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to, within 90 days, conduct a fresh election in the senatorial district.

The court made the declaration while delivering judgement on the appeals filed by the senatorial candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and that of Labour Party (LP), Chris Giwa and Gyang Zi, respectively.

Mwadkwon was elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Justice E. Daudu, who read the lead judgement of the appellate court, held that the High Court order was not fully complied with by the PDP, saying 12 Local Government Areas in Plateau State didn’t participate in the said party congress.

Justice Daudu said: “The court made total findings with regard to the issue in focus.

“To avoid anarchy, I agree with the appellants that the court must protect an order of another court.

“I agree with the appellant that the third respondent had no valid structure and could not have claimed to have validly nominated the second respondent (Mwadkwon) for the election.

“Given the findings of this court, the appeal, therefore, succeeds as the court order was not complied with.

“The first respondent is hereby ordered to conduct another senatorial election in Plateau North within 90 days.”

Giwa and Zi had appealed against the judgement of the National/State Election Petitions Tribunal in Jos, Plateau State, which earlier affirmed Mwadkwon as the winner of the senatorial election.

The appellants had contended that Mwadkwon was not qualified to stand for an election, saying his party, the PDP, which nominated him during the election, had no structure to do so, having not complied with an earlier order of the High Court for the party to conduct a proper state congress.

The Star

Segun Ojo