‘Double Nomination’ Not Cognizable Basis For Disqualification – APC Defends Shettima

The ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) has said that the separate petitions by the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar seeking to disqualify the its vice presidential candidate, Shettima are pre-election issues.

VerseNews Nigeria reports that separate suit filed by Obi and Atiku claimed that Shettima’s nomination as Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s running mate was in breach of the provisions of sections 29(1), 33, 35, and 84(1)(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022.

The parties argued that Shettima’s nomination to contest the position of vice-president and Borno central senatorial seat at the same time is unlawful.

This Online news Media reports that in response to the alleged unlawful nomination; the respondents submitted that the petitioners not being members of the APC lacked the locus standi to query the nomination of candidates on the platform of the APC.

In addition, they said the case of Obi and LP has become statute barred, having failed to challenge the said nomination of the second respondent within 14 days of the date and events specifically pleaded in the petition.

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“All issues which relates to Tinubu and Shettima qualification are pre-election issues in respect of which the Court of Appeal, sitting as the tribunal does not have jurisdiction to entertain.

“Allegation of double nomination of an associate/running mate as made in the petition is not a cognizable basis for disqualification of the winner of a presidential election under the 1999 Constitution,” they submitted.

In its reply to the petition by Atiku and PDP, the APC through its lead counsel, Lateef Fagbemi SAN, submitted that the “petitioners’ paragraph 146 in support of Ground 4 on non-qualification is vague, bare and meaningless as having the constitutional threshold is not part of the requirement to contest an election.”