Nigeria Content Online

A Federal High
Court in Abuja yesterday, dismissed an application for stay of
execution of judgment by former Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Mr. Aminu Bello Masari seeking to halt the judgement
of the court which stopped him from contesting the governorship
position of Katsina State under the Congress for Progressive Change
(CPC) in the April election.

Presiding judge
Abdul Kafarati also affirmed its earlier judgement that Senator Yakubu
Garba Lado is the authentic candidate of the CPC in Katsina State as
well as the candidature of 43 other candidates contesting for the
Senate, Federal and State Houses of Assembly in the state.

Mr. Kafarati had,
on February 25, 2011 ordered the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) not to recognize any other candidate for the Katsina
state governorship position under the CPC other than Lado.

Senator Lado and
his running mate, Abdulaziz Yar’adua had gone to court seeking an order
to restrain INEC from accepting Mr. Masari; the senator claimed that he
won the primary election and should have been presented instead of Mr.
Masari.

Mr. Lado wants the
court to mandate the submission of no other candidate except him to
INEC as the party’s governorship candidate for the state for the April
2011 election.

Specifically, he
wants the court to mandate the electoral body to accept only him as the
candidate of the party at the 2011 general elections for which they won
their party primaries.

The aggrieved
Senator who led 44 other members of the party told the court to
restrain the electoral body from accepting any other candidates apart
from them as the candidates of the party for the April governorship
election in Katsina state.

Kafarati, in his
judgment held that CPC has no option than to submit Senator Lado’s name
to INEC as its authentic governorship candidate for the Katsina State
governorship election in April.

He dismissed the
defendants’ preliminary objection, said Lado’s action was properly
brought before the court, that the plaintiffs have reasonable cause of
action as they are the authentic candidate of the party in Katsina
State.

The former speaker
and the CPC had filed an objection to Lado’s suit on the ground that
the way and manner a party elects or nominates its candidate for any
elective position is an internal affair of the party and that the court
lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.

But, Kafarati, in
his judgement said with the 1999 constitution of the federal republic
of Nigeria as amended, the election or nomination of party’s candidate
ceases to be solely an internal affairs of the party because the
amended constitution provides that any aggrieved member of the party
can sue if the process for electing or nominating the party’s candidate
violate the party guidelines and the Electoral Act which are tailored
in line with the constitution of the country.

Furthermore he held
that the defendants failed woefully to bring any documentary evidence
before the court to show that there was another governorship primary
election held by the party where Masari was elected.

Masari has gone
before the Abuja Court of Appeal challenging Kafarati’s judgment which
held in his judgment delivered on February 25, 2011 that Lado is the
authentic gubernatorial candidate of the CPC in Katsina State.

In a motion on
notice filed through his counsel, John Baiyeshea , Masari is seeking an
order of injunction restraining Lado and the 44 others who filed the
initial suit before the Federal High Court in Abuja, their agents or
privies from giving effect to the Judgment delivered by Justice Abdul
Kafarati pending the hearing and determination of his appeal before the
Appeal Court.

In an affidavit in
support of the motion, Masari said he, the party and its Chairman,
Prince Tony Momoh are dissatisfied with the judgment, as a result of
which thousands of supporters and sympathizers have resolved not to
vote for the party in the forthcoming general election in Katsina.

He also said he won the primary election which held on January 13,
2011 and it was duly declared by the relevant committee which conducted
the election.