The Appeal court in Abuja has sacked the Governor of Plateau State Mutfwang Manasseh of the People’s Democratic Party PDP.
The court ordered that Independent National Electoral Commission INEC recognise Nentawe Goshwe of the All Progressives Congress APC as the validly elected governor of Plateau state in the March 18 governorship election.
Validly Sponsored
Justice Elfrieda Williams- Dawodu who led a three-man panel while delivering the lead judgment cited section 177 of the Constitution, noting that Manasseh was not validly sponsored by the PDP during the election.
The panel held that PDP violated the court order by not holding a valid Congress in the 17 local government areas of that Plateau state.
The Appellate court held that the party conducted Congress in only 5 local government areas of the state, and as such is a nullity.
Validity
The court while dismissing the decision of Plateau state tribunal held that, the issue of qualification is both a pre-election and a post-election matter contrary to the findings of tribunal which held that the appellant lacked the locus to contest the validity of the respondent.
The court also noted that under section 134 of the electoral act it is the sole right of a political party to sponsor its candidate having met the necessary requirements to do so.
While evoking section 136 of the electoral act, the court ordered INEC to retrieve the certificate of return issued to Governor Manasseh Mutfwang and issue a fresh certificate of return to the Goshwe of All Progressives Congress APC.
Goshwe is challenging the victory of Governor Mutfwang on the ground that the he was not qualified to have contested the election because he (Mutfwang) was not validly sponsored and nominated by his political party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to run in the March 18 2023 polls.
Goshwe insisted that, the PDP lacked structure and was not qualified to sponsor any candidate in an election, alleging that Mutfwang’s poll was not conducted in compliance with the Electoral Act and therefore did not win the majority of lawful votes cast during the election.
Lateefah Ibrahim
