Chukwuemeka Njoku, Abuja
Justice Olukayode Adeniyi of High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, sitting in Apo on Monday upheld the election of Sen. John Enoh as the standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the March 2 governorship election in Cross Rivers state. Mr Uguru Usani, Minister of Niger Delta Development, who was defeated by Enoh in the governorship primary, had headed to court to seek redress on the grounds that he was manipulated out of the process. He instituted the suit against the APC, INEC and Enoh.Specifically, the plaintiff challenged the outcome of the exercise, and urged the court to declare him the authentic gubernatorial candidate of the APC in Cross Rivers state. Usani had averred before the court that the APC party primary was conducted solely by the state executives contrary to the provisions of Paragraph 14 and 20 of the APC Guidelines. He insisted that he participated in the process, adding that he scored the highest number of votes.But he expressed shock that his name was replaced with that of Enoh. “I was shocked to find out that my name was fraudulently replaced with that of Enoh,’’ he stated in court processes filed before Justice Adeniyi. In view of the foregoing, Usani therefore, prayed the court to grant an order declaring him as the validly elected governorship candidate of the APC in Cross Rivers state. He also prayed amongst other reliefs for a declaration that forwarding Enoh’s name by APC to INEC as its candidate in Cross River was illegal, unconstitutional, null and void. However, delivering judgment on the pre election suit, Justice Olukayode Adeniyi, held that the plaintiff had failed to adduce substantial evidence to prove his case. The judge said he was minded to dismiss the suit of the plaintiff because the court was satisfied with evidence that showed that APC conducted governorship primaries in collaboration with the state executives of the party. The court also admitted in evidence a proof that officials of the INEC were on ground to monitor the exercise. According to Justice Adeniyi, documentary evidence before the court showed that the APC governorship primary was conducted on Sept. 30, 2018. The court therefore, said the suit should not have been filed as the party had satisfied all requirements as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act in the conduct of the exercise. “In the final analysis, the judgment of this court is that the case lacks merit and the court lacks the jurisdiction to undo what has been done rightly. “The suit is hereby dismissed, ’’ the court declared.
