Court Sets Date As Tinubu Faces Major Test In Lagos

By GWG Staff,

The Federal Court Lagos has set December 9, 2020 for definite hearing on a suit filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and its candidate in the Lagos East Senatorial Bye-Election, Babatunde Gbadamosi against the eligibility of the All Progressives Congress, APC candidate, Adetokunbo Abiru.

The plaintiffs had dragged Abiru and the APC to court on the claim that the APC candidate was involved in double registration and should as such be disqualified from the contest.

The PDP claimed that it was a violation of Section 31 of the Electoral Act.

The case if successful could be a major electoral blow for the national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu who had led the APC and its progenitors to win all Senate seats in Lagos.

The PDP and Gbadamosi had through their counsel, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, SAN asked the court to direct the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to remove Abiru’s name as a candidate for the bye-election.

Abiru and APC have, however, challenged the capacity of the court to hear the suit which they claimed was filed out due time and that the case is as such statue barred.\

They claimed that the case should have been filed within 14 days as provided for in the constitution.

The PDP has, however, claimed that the case was filed within the stipulated time and that it made its case on September 29 less than two weeks after Abiru’s name was published as the APC candidate on September 17, 2020.

In affirming its case against Abiru, the PDP had claimed what it called as a water-tight case of double registration against Abiru saying in a statement issued by Dr Adetokunbo Pearse, Media Director to PDP senatorial candidate, Babatunde Gbadamosi.

The statement read in part: “Lagos APC true to its disregard for the rule of law and disrespect for Lagosians has classified the PDP case against its embattled candidate for Senate as ‘false and laughable’.

“Firstly, there is nothing false about the case. Court records will show that indeed, on September 29, 2020, the PDP and its Senatorial Candidate, Babatunde Gbadamosi dragged Abiru, his party, APC, and Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC to court.

“In the suit filed in the Federal High Court of Nigeria in the Lagos Judicial Division Holden at Lagos, the PDP and Gbadamosi are asking for the disqualification of Abiru on at least two counts: One, Abiru has two Permanent Voters cards, and he is not registered to vote in the East Senatorial District.

“Our evidence for the first case against Abiru can be verified from the Voters Register as it exists on the INEC server.

“For the second case against Abiru, we refer to his letter of 14 August 2020, to INEC, requesting a transfer of his address from Road A2 HSE Ago, Carlton Gate Estate, off Chevron Drive, Lekki Lagos, to 38 Oriwu Road, Ita Elewa, Ikorodu Lagos. Mr Abiru’s request was not granted, because as INEC explained to him, ‘Continuous Voter Registration Exercise is presently suspended’ Clearly, therefore, based on case number 1, Mr Abiru is guilty of identity fraud.

“With two PVC’s, it is reasonable to assume that Abiru is one of those people who vote multiple times on election day. Based on case number 2, it is clear that “Abiru cannot vote in the October 31 Lagos East Senatorial Election.

“According to the constitution, a citizen who cannot vote cannot be voted for. The case against Abiru is watertight.

“His sponsor did not do his due diligence. He imposed Abiru on the members of his party and wants to impose him on the people of Lagos East (Epe, Ibeju-Lekki, Ikorodu, Kosofe, Somolu).

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