2023: Appeal Court sets aside nullification of Akwa Ibom APC governorship primary

The Court of Appeal, Abuja, has set aside the judgement of a Federal High Court, Uyo, which nullified the nomination of Akanimo Udofia as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State for the 2023 election.

The lower court had on 14 November 2022 nullified the election of Mr Udofia as the APC candidate and barred him from participating in a fresh primary which it ordered.

The case was instituted by a former aide to President Mohammadu Buhari, Ita Enang, who was an aspirant in the 26 May 2022 governorship primary of the APC in Akwa Ibom.

Delivering judgement on Thursday on the appeal filed by Mr Udofia, the appellate court held that the Federal High Court in Uyo wrongly assumed jurisdictions to entertain the case by Mr Enang contrary to provisions of Section 97 and 98 of the Sheriffs Act, Channels television reported.

The three-person panel of the appellate court therefore unanimously set aside the 14 November 2022 judgement on the grounds that the lower court lacked jurisdiction.

The Appeal Court reportedly allowed the appeal by the APC against Augustine Akpan, who had challenged the result of the APC governorship primary election held in November last year.

According to the report, the panel said the appeal by the APC had merit and is hereby allowed, adding that the lower court, having no jurisdiction to entertain the suit, the reliefs and the consequential orders granted cannot stand.

A judge, Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court, Uyo, had agreed with Mr Enang’s argument and ruled that the APC candidate, Mr Udofia, was not a member of the APC, having not participated in all stages of the process of electing a governorship candidate of the party.

Mr Udofia, an entrepreneur, was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and had bought the PDP nomination form to contest the party governorship primary in Akwa Ibom State before he defected to the APC.

Mrs Okeke had ruled that Mr Udofia did not satisfy the provisions of the electoral laws which stipulate that he ought to have been a member of the APC for at least 30 days before the nomination and that moreover, the waiver Mr Udofia allegedly got from the APC was not signed by “any known persons.”

The lower court had nullified Mr Udofia’s nomination and barred him from participating in a fresh primary.

But the appellate court by this judgement has restored Mr Udofia as the candidate of the APC in Akwa Ibom State.

The APC will now begin its 2023 campaigns which had been grounded as a result of the earlier judgment.