Zoning Dispute: Confusion, Intrigues as Aspirant's Legal Move To Stop PDP Presidential Primary Fails
- Earlier, presidential aspirant, Mr. Cosmas Ndukwe, approached a Federal High Court in Abuja seeking the suspension of the presidential primary of the PDP
- In a new move, on Wednesday, May 25, the court suspended the proceedings by Ndukwe to stop further the presidential primary election of the opposition PDP
- Meanwhile, the PDP presidential primary is slated to hold on Saturday, May 28 even as Atiku Abubakar has applied to be joined as an interested party in the matter
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On Wednesday, May 25, the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja suspended further proceedings on the suit seeking to halt the scheduled presidential primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), till June 1.
Justice Donatus Okorowo deferred further hearing on the matter to await the decision of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, Vanguard reports.
The adjournment came on a day a former Vice President and presidential aspirant of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar, applied to be joined as an interested party in the matter.
Source: Facebook
The PDP presidential primary and aggrieved aspirants
It will be recalled that PDP had fixed Saturday, May 28, to conduct its presidential primary election, and to that effect, screened 17 aspirants that obtained its presidential form to contest in the 2023 election.
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The aggrieved aspirant, Cosmos Ndukwe asks court to stop the PDP primaries
However, an aggrieved aspirant, Mr. Cosmos Ndukwe, approached the court to challenge the scheduled presidential primary on the premise that PDP was planning to act in breach of its own zoning formula.
He told the court that the party had an arrangement that allowed for the rotation of elective offices, insisting that by that process, it ought to be the turn of the Southern part of the country, especially the southeast geopolitical zone, to produce the next president.
Ndukwe, who is a former Deputy Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, also filed an application for an order of injunction to restrain his party from proceeding with the primary election, pending the hearing and determination of his suit.
The court declined the order, and gives further directive
Though the court declined to issue a restraining order, it, however, directed the plaintiff to put all the defendants on notice to enable them to appear before it to show cause why the primary election should not be halted.
Aside from the PDP, other defendants in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/508/2022, were its national chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, Chairman of its Primary Election Planning Committee/National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, as well as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
PDP chairman Ayu speaks
Meanwhile, at the resumed proceedings on Wednesday, Mr. Aliyu M. Aliyu, SAN, who appeared for the PDP chairman, Dr. Ayu, told the court that he has entered an appeal before the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
He, therefore, urged the court to temporarily hands-off the case since the appellant had already okayed a hearing on the case.
Besides, he drew the attention of the court to the fact that the plaintiff lacked the locus standi to institute the action, stressing that he is not one of the presidential aspirants of the party.
Other defendants in the case aligned with Aliyu’s position and urged the court to adjourn the matter.
2023: Tambuwal spokesman writes open letter to PDP delegates
Prince Daniel, the spokesperson of the 2023 Tambuwal Campaign Organisation has written an open letter to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegates ahead of the presidential primary election of the opposition party.
In the letter titled 'It's time to rebuild Nigeria, Together!' Daniel urged the delegates to elect his principal who is the governor of Sokoto state and the leading presidential aspirant in the party, Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.
Part of the letter reads:
“I humbly write to you to draw your attention to something that will spare us further agonies of misgovernance as the elections draw close."
2023: Winner emerges in Oyo PDP governorship primary
In another development, Governor Seyi Makinde, on Wednesday, May 25, won the governorship primary of the PDP in Oyo state.
Makinde, at the primary election held in Ibadan, the state capital, claimed a total of 1,040 delegates' votes and thus floored Hazeem Gbolarunmi who managed to poll only two votes.
Out of the total 1,048 votes cast, six were voided.
Source: Legit.ng
