The All Progressives Congress (APC) has sued the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). In the suit, APC is seeking an order to permit its candidates in Zamfara State to participate in the 2019 general elections.
The APC filed the suit at the Federal High Court, Abuja, where it also applied for an order of perpetual injunction to restrain INEC from giving effect to the content of a letter with Ref. No. lNEC/SEC/654/1/330 and dated October 9, 2018 which foreclosed it from presenting candidates in Zamfara for failing to conduct its primaries within the stipulated period.
The case was okayed by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu for hearing on Friday. The court has also fixed December 11 to commence its hearing.
This was after the judge joined the governorship aspirant of APC in the state, Senator Garba Marafa and a senatorial aspirant, Alhaji Siraju, as well as seven other chieftains of the party, as defendants in the suit.
The APC, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1279/2018, asked the court to:
“Declare that INEC’s letter purporting to exclude the party from presenting and submitting the list of its candidates for the forthcoming election in Zamfara state scheduled for 2019, is null, void, ultra vires and of no effect having regards to the provisions of sections 31(1) and 86(2), (3) and (4) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).
“A declaration that by virtue of section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and section 31(1) of the Electoral Act (as amended), the defendant lacks the power to refuse to collect the name of the plaintiff’s candidates for Zamfara state presented and to be submitted to it not later than 60 days before the election scheduled for February 2019.