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With less than two
weeks until the state House of Assembly elections, a Federal High Court
in Benin yesterday ruled that the Edo State chapter of the Action
Congress of Nigeria (ACN) illegally substituted the name of Kabiru
Adjoto, who won the party primaries for Akoko-Edo I on January 12,
2011, with that of the runner-up, Anslem Agbabi.

Mr Adjoto, who is
currently representing the constituency in the Edo Assembly, filed a
lawsuit challenging the party’s action, and INEC’s decision to accept
the name substitution. In his ruling, the presiding judge, Adamu Hobon,
said that the party violated the amended Electoral Act, and that his
judgment was based on his consideration of the lawmaker’s allegations,
contained in a 24-paragraph affidavit and written addresses on merit.

The judge added
that, in line with the relevant sections of the 2011 Electoral
Amendment Act, the ACN in Edo duly organised indirect party primaries
to elect candidates who would contest the 2011 general elections in all
of the senatorial, House of Representatives and State Assembly seats in
the state, on January 12 2011.

For the Akoko-Edo
constituency I state assembly seat, the judge affirmed that Mr Adjoto
was declared the winner, having scored the highest number of votes
cast. Consequently, his name, among others, was forwarded to the INEC
in a letter dated and signed on January 13, 2011 by Osaro Idah, the Edo
ACN State Secretary, the receipt of which was acknowledged on January
15, 2011 by the electoral umpire.

No just cause

Mr Hobon observed
that after the ACN informed INEC of Mr Adjoto’s candidacy, the only
approved rationale for substituting his name for another would be if he
died or wrote to withdraw his candidacy from the said election.

With neither of
these conditions met, Mr Hobon ruled that Mr Adjoto remains the valid
candidate of the ACN for the Akoko-Edo constituency I for the State
Assembly seat, and any contrary decision on the part of the ACN or INEC
is a violation of the Electoral Act. Further justifying his ruling, the
judge said that Mr Agbabi and INEC filed their counter affidavits and
written addresses against Mr Adjoto lawsuit too late and without the
leave of the court.

According to the
judge, Mr Agbabi filed counter affidavits and written addresses 11 days
too late, the ACN in Edo did same eight days too late while the INEC
filed 4 days late. None of the parties asked the court for an extension
of time. This action, he said, violated order 13 section 35, subsection
15 of the rules of court.

Reacting to the
ruling, counsel to the petitioner, Nosagie Peter Osifo, said that the
judgment of the court is “illuminating, as it corrects an apparent case
of injustice” against his client.

Mr Agbabi’s counsel, Emmanuel Usoh, said they will appeal the ruling once they receive copies of the judgment from the court.