GOODLUCK JONATHAN
An Abuja High Court on Monday fixed January 4, 2011 for the hearing of a preliminary objection by the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, President Goodluck Jonathan and INEC against a suit by some PDP members.
Justice Ishaq Bello had fixed the date following the filing of the objection by the defendants.
The plaintiffs, Ambassador Yahaya Kwande, Dubem Onyia and Alhaji Lawal Kaita, had approached the court, asking it to restrain INEC from accepting Jonathan as the party’s candidate for next year’s presidential election.
The plaintiffs also asked the court to restrain the party and Nwodo from presenting Jonathan as their candidate for the 2011 poll and joined Nwodo, Jonathan and INEC as co-defendants to the suit.
The plaintiffs had alleged that by virtue of sections 13 and 15(a), (c) and (f) of the 3rd schedule of the nation’s 1999 constitution, section 86(1) and (2) and 67(9) and (10) of the Electoral Act, 2010, INEC was bound to compel PDP to comply with the provisions of Article 7.2(c) of its constitution, 2009 as amended.
The plaintiffs further want the court to declare that by virtue of the provisions of sections 14(3) and 223(2)(b) of the 1999 constitution, section 87(9) and (10) of the Electoral Act 2010 and Articles 2and 7.2 (c) of PDP’s constitution and the resolution of the national caucus of the party reached on December 2, 2002, Jonathan, not being a Northerner, cannot contest the presidential on the platform of PDP.
They also wanted the court to declare that the PDP was bound to allow a candidate from the Northern geo-political zone to contest for the presidency in 2011 presidential election to complete the zone’s eight years slot in producing candidate for the election into the office of the president.
The plaintiffs also added that the National Working Committee of the PDP could not by its decision override the resolution of the national caucus which they claimed was a superior organ to it in the party’s hierarchy.
In a 35-paragraph affidavit in support of the suit and deposed to by Onyia, the plaintiffs allege that the late President Umaru Yar’Adua, from the North West geo-political zone became president in May 2007 on the platform of the PDP, pursuant to an abiding zoning arrangement of the PDP which was consistent with the federal character policy entrenched in sections 14(3) and 223(2)(b) of the constitution.
According to them, the late Yar’Adua, whose death led to Jonathan’s emergence as president, was entitled to eight years tenure of two terms of four years each, which was the Northern slot before his demise on May 6, 2010.
They added that the second four-year term for a Northern candidate was by virtue of the 2002 resolution of the party and the federal character principle entrenched in the constitution.
Source:Punch
No comments:
Post a Comment