•Report by Kamil Opeyemi
Following the Supreme Court Judgement on Wednesday which nullified the primary that produced Senator Emmanuel Bwacha as the APC governorship candidate in the forthcoming general elections in Taraba State,the National Working Committee of the party has fixed Friday, February 10, 2023 for a fresh governorship primary election in the State.
The National Organizing Secretary, Sulaiman Muhammad Argungu, in a letter addressed to the Taraba State Chairman of the party dated February 2, 2023, said the exercise will be held at Jolly Nyame Stadium in Jalingo, the state capital.
“We are in receipt of the judgments of the Supreme Court in the matters of Chief David Sabo Kente V. APC & 20rs, Suit No: SC/CV/1565/22 and Chief David Sabo Kente V. Sen. Emmanuel Bwacha & 20rs, Suit No.: SC/CV/1564/22 delivered on the 1st day of February, 2023, wherein the Supreme Court affirmed the nullification of the result of the gubernatorial primary election in Taraba State, and ordered the conduct of a fresh primary election.
“In compliance thereof and in tandem with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 (as amended), we shall be adopting the Indirect Mode for the conduct of the fresh primary election. The venue will be Jolly Nyame Stadium, Jalingo, Taraba State and the scheduled date is Friday, 10th February, 2023.
“While wishing you a successful exercise, please accept the best wishes of the National Secretariat of our great Party,”the letter reads.
Supreme Court had on February 1 nullified the nomination of Emmanuel Bwacha as the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Taraba State.
Delivering judgment,Justice Adamu Jauro affirmed the verdict of the Federal High court which held that the APC did not conduct any valid governorship primary in the state.
It would be recalled that the Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo in September 2022 nullified the governorship primaries that produced Bwacha as the APC candidate.
In his ruling, Justice Simon Amobeda on the case filed by one of the governorship aspirants, David Kente, the judge directed the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct a fresh governorship primary in the state within 14 days.
The court also ordered Bwacha to stop parading himself as the governorship candidate of the APC, as well as INEC to stop recognising Bwacha as a candidate.
After the judgment, Bwacha, filed an appeal which reinstated him in November last year.
The Court of Appeal in Yola in November 2022 upheld the governorship candidacy of Bwacha and Aishatu Ahmed also known as Aisha Binani for Taraba and Adamawa states respectively.
The court set aside a ruling by the High Court nullifying their candidacy and ordered that their names be forwarded to the INEC as the APC governorship candidates for both states.
The court’s sitting was presided over by a panel of three justices of the Court of Appeal, which had justice T. Y Hassan as the presiding judge and two others, Judge M. O. Bolaji and J. G. Abundaga, as JCA 1 and JCA 2.
However,The apex court in a judgment delivered by Justice Adamu Jauro,
set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal Yola Division, which reinstated Bwacha as the governorship candidate of the APC in the March 11 governorship elections.
The five-member panel of justices upheld the judgement of the trial court which had ordered for a fresh primary election within 14 days and parties to bear their respective costs.
It held that there was no valid APC Primary elections conducted in Taraba state.
The court agreed that the results of the primary election were purported and fraudulently allocated to the candidate.