The Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin, Kwara state on Monday dismissed a suit challenging the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) primary election in Kwara State in 2011 that produced Abdulfatah Ahmed as a candidate of the party.
According to agency reports, the court ruled that the appeal was ‘unmeritorious’ and dismissed it for want of legality.
Justice Ignatius Agube, leading two others, unanimously resolved two issues raised for determination against the appellant. He said the respondents substantially complied with the PDP constitution and that “the article of the party gives no recognition to the appellants.”
A Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin, had last year dismissed the same suit filed by a PDP governorship aspirant, Bashie Bolarinwa, who had asked the court to nullify the result of the primary elections that produced the party’s governorship candidate, Mr Ahmed.
The High Court Judge, Justice Olayinka Faji had upheld the prayers of the defendants that the national secretariat of the party has a right to conduct primaries and raise panel to handle complaints thereof.
The suit, filed by Samuel Adedayo, a factional PDP chairman, against the national body of the party, has Mr Bolarinwa and two others as plaintiffs They said the primaries conducted by the faction that produced Mr Bolarinwa was the authentic one while that which produced Mr Ahmed was illegal.
Other defendants in the suit were the PDP National Secretary, Kawu Baraje; Acting National Chairman, Mohammed Bello Ahmed and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).