From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The Supreme Court has nullified the participation of Andy Uba in the last governorship election in Anambra State as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Supreme Court affirmed the February 23, 2022 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the December 20, 2021 judgment by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
A five-member panel of the court held in a judgment, yesterday, that the APC breached its guidelines for the conduct of primaries and, thus, failed to conduct a valid primary from which Uba emerged as the party’s candidate in the Anambra governorship election.
In the December 20, 2021 judgment, Justice Ekwo held, among others, that Uba was never a candidate in the election held on November 6, 2021, having emerged from an illegally conducted primary election held by the APC.
Justice Ekwo held that the plaintiff, in the case marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/648/201, George Moghalu, (an APC aspirant for the election) succeeded in proving that the APC did not conduct a valid primary election from which Uba claimed to have emerged as the party’s candidate.
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the high court had maintained that the primary election that saw Uba emerging as flag bearer of the APC in the election, was done in substantial breach of both the electoral guidelines for the conduct of governorship primary election, as well as the party’s Constitution.
He held that the APC, having failed to comply with the law in the conduct of its primary, was, therefore, bereft of any valid candidate for the gubernatorial contest.
The judgement followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/648/2021, which was brought before the court by an aggrieved APC governorship aspirant in the state, Mr. George Moghalu.
Dissatisfied, Uba approached the Abuja division of the Court of Appeal to set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court.
However, in its judgment delivered on February 23, the appellate court said it found no reason to set-aside the high court judgement that disqualified Uba and the APC.