Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has instituted a suit before the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking among others, a declaration that the March 26 national convention of the All Progressive Congress (APC) is illegal.
It also wants the court to issue an order de-registering the APC as a political party on the grounds that it allegedly failed to meet the requirements of sections 222(a), 223(b) and 225 of the Constitution.
In a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/389/2022 filed for the PDP by its lawyer, Samuel Irabor, the party argued that by a certified true copy of the list of APC’s current leadership it obtained from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the party (APC) is being run by a 13 members Executive Committee, whose members fall bellow the number stipulated in Section 223 of the Constitution.
In the suit filed on March 25, 2022, it argued that by the provision of the Constitution, a political party’s Exco or Governing body must be drawn from 2/3 of the 36 states of federation which amount to 24 members.
Listed as defendants in the case are INEC, the APC, its Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee(CECPC) and the National Chairman of the APC Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee.
The party is also praying the court to declare all prior acts and decisions of the Mai Mala Buni-led CECPC before the institution of the suit as well as all subsequent acts, including the convention of March 26 as null and void and proceed further to order a de-registration of the APC by INEC in line with Section 225A of the 1999 constitution.
In the application, the PDP equally asked the court for an order of perpetual injunction restraining INEC from recognising, communicating with, dealing with or having any business whatsoever with the APC as a registered political party.
The parry averred that by a certified true copy of INEC’s list of APC’s current EXCO, the party is being run by a 13-member EXCO .
It said the constitutional stipulations in Section 223 of the 1999 Constitution that the EXCO or Governing Body of a political party must be drawn from two-third of the 36 states of Nigeria is mathematically 24.
It urged the court to declare all the prior acts of the Mala Buni-led caretaker committee leading to the institution of the suit as well as all subsequent acts, including the convention of March 26 is null and void.
It prayed for order to de-registrar the APC by INEC in line with Section 225A of the 1999 constitution.
In the originating summons brought pursuant to Order 3, Rule 6 of the Federal High Court Rules, the party urged the court to determine “whether upon a calm consideration of Section 223(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, the leadership of the APC (2nd defendants) can be made up of only 13 members as presently constituted by the chairman of the CECPC and forwarded/registered with the 1st defendant (INEC).
“And if the answer is in the negative, whether the APC has any valid leadership so called, forwarded /registered with INEC in compliance with Section 223(1) of the 1999 Constitution and whether any act done by the said leadership is valid and founded in law.
” If the answer to the 2nd and 3rd legs of the issue in the above paragraph is further in the negative, whether the APC is not liable to be de-registered as a political party pursuant to Sections 222(a), 223(2)(b) and 225(A) of the 1999 Constitution.”
It sought “a declaration that by the express provisions of Section 223(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, the leadership of the APC cannot be made up of only 13 members as presently constituted by the chairman of the CECPC and forwarded /registered with INEC.
“A declaration that all the prior actions and subsequent actions undertaken by the defendants are null void and of no effect.”
The matter was yet to be assigned to a judge as at the time of filing the story.
The Nation / The NewsGuru
