APC Yobe North: S/court dissent verdict declares Sen President Lawan winner

of summons in view of grievous allegations in his suit against the defendants.

Justice Nweze said that hostile issues were involved in the Machina’s matter that cannot be resolved through originating summons.

However, Justices Adamu Jauro and Emmanuel Akomaye Agim disagreed with the majority judgment and held that both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal were corrected in their findings and declaring Machina as APC’S Senatorial candidate for the Yobe North Senatorial District.

The two Justices held that Machina was lawfully nominated because the primary election of May 28, 2022 which produced him was lawfully conducted in line with the provisions of the law.

Justices Jauro and Agim insisted that APC conducted an unlawful primary election because the May 28 primary election was not cancelled before that of June t9, 2022 that purpotedly produced Lawan was illegal, unlawful and a breach of section 285 of the 1999 Constitution.

Besides, they held that Lawan had in an undisputed letter to APC voluntarily withdrew his participation in the primary election for the Presidential election.

They contended that INEC was specific that it witnessed the May 28 primary election that produced Machina but did not witness that of June 9, 2022 because there was no notification from APC to that effect.

They therefore dismissed the appeal by the APC for being incompetent and unmeritorious.

Recall that Justice Monica Dongban-Mensen, who presided over a 3-man panel of the appellate court, gave the affirmation in an appeal by the APC (appellant) challenging the decision of Justice Fadimatu Aminu of the Federal High Court Damaturu, which had on September 28, 2022, declared Bashir Sherriff Machina as winner of the primary election organised by the party on May 28, 2022.

However, having lost the APC presidential primary to Bola Tinubu, the party opted for Senate President Ahmed Lawan to replace Machina. But Machina insisted that he would not withdraw for the Senate President.

However, the APC submitted the Senate President’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)as its senatorial candidate for Yobe North.

Miffed with the decision of the party, Machina approached the court to seek redress.

Specifically, Machina in his suit, asked the court to declare him as the validly elected senatorial candidate of the APC for Yobe North Senatorial District.

The lower court judge had nullified the parallel primary election that produced Lawan on June 9, 2022, insisting that the National Working Committee of the APC conducted a valid primary election on May 28, which was won by Bashir Sheriff Machina.

Consequently, it ordered the party to forward the name of Machina to INEC as the authentic winner of the primary election for Yobe North.