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Nigeria: Disqualification Threat - Court Summons Gov. Sylva
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Leadership (Abuja)
15 May 2008
Posted to the web 15 May 2008
George Agba
A Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday ordered that originating summons and all others court process in a suit seeking to disqualify former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Timipre Sylva from contesting the forthcoming re-run election be served on him through the national headquarters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The court order came yesterday as the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) approached an Abuja Federal High Court seeking to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from conduction the election in Bayelsa State without including its candidate.
Justice Adamu Bello gave the order after his hearing a motion ex-parte on substituted service by three chieftains of the PDP from Bayelsa State, Victor Ebiyekon, Agoro-Owei Egbe and Dengiye Ubannigu.
Counsel to the plaintiffs, moved for an ex-parte order to serve the originating summons and all other process on Chief Sylva through the PDP, which is the second defendant.
In an affidavit in support of their motion, the plaintiffs said Chief Sylva is a staunch member of the PDP and the alleged flag-bearer of the party in the forthcoming re-run election in the state and always at the PDP headquarters, Abuja, as part of his election activities, stressing that he uses policemen attached to him to prevent court processes being served on him.
Justice Garba granted the order as prayed and adjourned the matter to May 23, 2008 for hearing.
But both the PDP and the INEC have filed preliminary objections to the matter.
The plaintiffs are challenging the eligibility of Sylva to stand as the flag-bearer of their party in the election scheduled for this May 24.
They are praying for an order of the court directing the PDP to conduct fresh primary in the state so as to get an eligible candidate to represent them at the re-run governorship election.
According to them, Sylva's nomination by the party at the governorship election conducted on April 21, 2007 where he won ab-inito was in breach of the party's constitution.
They said he was not qualified to be declared as the nominated or elected candidate, entitled to be gubernatorial candidate when the total result declared at the said gubernatorial primary election showed that he could not secure up to 50 per cent of the total votes cast.
Consequently, they are praying for an order setting aside the letter of the PDP dated April 21, 2008 purportedly submitted and or forwarding the name of Sylva to the INEC as the nominated and or elected flag-bearer the party in the election.
They are also asking for an order canceling the name of Sylva submitted to the INEC as the nominated and or elected flag-bearer of the PDP to contest re-scheduled governorship elections for Bayelsa State.
In related development, the CDC yesterday approached an Abuja Federal High Court where it filed a suit seeking to stop the electoral commission from conducting fresh governorship election in Bayelsa State without including its candidate.
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According to the party, the Court of Appeal judgement, which ordered for the fresh poll in the state, did not direct the INEC to conduct fresh election only for the political parties that participated in the April 2007 governorship poll alone.
It contended that besides, the appellate court ordered for fresh election and not a by-election. Joined in the suit with the commission as defendant Sylva, whose election was nullified, and the PDP.
In its originating summons, the CDC said the party's national chairman, Mr. Madu Edozie, went to INEC's office on April 5 to collect form CF001 and nomination forms for the office of the governor to enable them send the party's candidate, but that the INEC refused to release the form to them, insisting that the party is not entitled to contest the election by sponsoring a candidate..
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