The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a suit seeking nullification of submission of the name of Ademola Adeleke as the Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party PDP in the last July 26 election.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu struck out the suit on the grounds that the plaintiff lacked locus standi to institute the case.
The Plaintiff in the suit, Awoyemi Oluwatayo had dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Adeleke before the court seeking order to void and set aside the submission of Adeleke’s name to INEC on grounds of alleged unlawful action.
The grouse of the plaintiff was that Adeleke’s name was hurriedly submitted by PDP on March 11 as against between March 14 to 18 as contained in the INEC guidelines.
The plaintiff urged the court to declare the submission of Adeleke’s name, having not been submitted within the period fixed by INEC, as illegal, unlawful, null and void.
He claimed that INEC must be bound by its official guidelines and that anything done outside the guidelines is against the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
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However, in his judgment, Justice Obiora Egwuatu struck out the suit on the ground that the said Awoyemi Oluwatayo Lukman lacked locus standi to have instituted the case.
Justice Egwuatu also held that the suit was statute barred from having been filled after 28 days, outside the 14 days stipulated by section 285 of the 1999 Constitution.
( Editor, Omor Bazuaye)
