The originating summons marked
FHC/ABJ/CS/01/2015 has Buhari, APC and the Independent National
Electoral Commission as the first, second and third defendants
respectively.
The suit was filed pursuant to Section
131 of the Constitution, which prescribes a minimum qualification for
nomination to participate in the presidential election and Section 31 of
the Electoral Act that requires all presidential candidates to depose
to an affidavit that they have satisfied and complied with the
constitutional requirements to be President of Nigeria.
Okafor,
in the suit filed through his counsel, Chief Ugo Ugunnadi, is
contending that Buhari’s form CF001 with the INEC, wherein he stated
that he obtained the minimum educational qualification of West African
Senior School Certificate could not be valid as the said certificate was
allegedly false or not genuine.
The plaintiff, among other things, is
asking the court to declare that “the information contained in Buhari’s
affidavit dated November 24, 2014, stating that the Secretary of the
Military Board was in custody of his WASSC was false and thereby
disqualified him from contesting the 2015 general elections.”
The lawyer is therefore seeking an order
of the court “compelling INEC to withdraw, remove and/or delete the
names of the 1st and 2nd defendants from the list of persons or
political parties eligible to contest for the Office of the President of
Nigeria in the 2015 general elections.”
The courts reopened today after being shut down for three weeks by the striking judicial workers in the country.
No date has yet been fixed to hear Okafor’s originating summons.
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