Court strikes out suit seeking to disqualify all PDP candidates in Enugu

 Court strikes out suit seeking to disqualify all PDP candidates in Enugu

Court strikes out suit seeking to disqualify all PDP candidates in Enugu

A federal high court in Enugu has struck out a suit seeking to disqualify all the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Enugu state from taking part in the general election.

According to the Cable Newspaper, Chika Idoko, senatorial candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for Enugu north, had instituted the suit seeking disqualification of all PDP candidates for breach of time.

He said that the PDP had violated section 77 of the election act by providing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with its membership register.

Parties must keep a membership list in both electronic and paper form, according to Section 77(2) of the Electoral Act, and pursuant to Section 77(3), “Each Political Party Shall Make Such Register Available to the Commission Not Later Than 30 Days Before the Date Fixed for the Party Primaries, Congresses or Convention.”

Idoko asked the court to throw out all of the PDP’s primaries since the party allegedly gave INEC its membership record after it was supposed to have been submitted.

The presiding judge Folashade Giwa-Ogunbanjo said in her ruling on Friday that the plaintiff lacked locus standi to question the PDP’s internal matters because she was not a party member.

Giwa-Ogunbanjo ruled that the court of appeal’s multiple divisions around the country had successfully settled the locus standi issue, which pertains to the inability of a non-party member to contest the internal affairs of a political party.

The judge did not award the plaintiff any costs and dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction.