The Attorney-General and Justice Minister of Nigeria, Abubakar Malami (SAN) has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to postpone election in Zamfara state owing to unresolved court judgements.
In a letter dated February 13, 2019, Malami said he was acting based on a petition from a law firm claiming that recent court judgments have annulled the stand of INEC that the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not conduct primaries in the state and can therefore not field candidates in the governorship and national assembly elections.
INEC has insisted that APC’s candidates will not be featuring in the forthcoming polls due to the alleged failure of the party to conduct valid primaries in the state.
A state High Court in Zamfara ruled on INEC’s barring APC candidates from contesting elections in the state, saying the primary elections held in Zamfara were valid.
But the reverse was the case as a Federal High Court in Abuja overruled the state High Court and upheld INEC decision to bar APC in Zamfara, with the statement that the party did not conduct valid primaries elections.
Malami however in a letter to INEC requested the postponement of National Assembly elections, the governorship, and state House of Assembly polls in Zamfara State to permit the APC candidates to contest at the polls.
He said, “In view of the fact, now that the Court of Appeal has upheld the primaries as valid, the APC in Zamfara State will need a little time to catch up with its contemporaries in the election.”
His appeal was stated in a three-page letter with his signature and dated 13, February 2019, with reference number MJ/DSD/03 early Thursday.
The justice minister said in this regard, “Granting them this concession is not necessarily favour but a right that inures to all contestants under similar circumstances.”
He added that, “Consequent on the above, INEC is invited to comply with the judgement of the Court of Appeal by admitting the results of the APC Zamfara State Primaries and to also comply with the provisions of Section 38 of the Electoral Act which empowers INEC to postpone the election for the governorship, National Assembly and House of Assembly elections.”
Reacting to Malami’s directive, counsel to the appellant, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), described it as an act of desperation, advising INEC to reject it.
He berated the APC for taking Nigerians for a ride.
“This letter is wrong. It shows that they are desperate. INEC should reject it. They see Nigeria as an APC entity. They don’t believe that Nigeria is not for APC alone but to all Nigerians. It is a wrong request that should be ignored,” he said.
However, the Court of Appeal in Sokoto yesterday validated the position of the INEC that the APC in Zamfara State does not have candidates for the governorship, National Assembly and state House of Assembly elections coming up on February 16 and March 2.
The court, presided over by Justice Jumai Sankey, with other members of the panel, Justices Ndukwe Anyanwu and Vincent Abiru, dismissed the appeal and the motion filed by Governor Abdulaziz Yari and Alhaji Muktar Idris praying the court to be allowed to contest the elections.
