Professor Zulum and
Senator Kashim Shettima
Professor Zulum and
Senator Kashim Shettima
Borno: Again Prof Zulum Defeats Opponents at Appeal
Court
The Court of Appeal Jos Division has dismissed an appeal
challenging the nomination of Borno Governor, Professor Babagana
Umara Zulum of the All Progressive Congress (APC).
Prof Zulum, an associate of an immediate former Governor of
Borno, Senator Kashim Shettima, defeated a group of appellant
comprising immediate past minister of state for power, works and
housing, Mustapha Baba Shehuri, a serial Borno governorship
aspirant, Kashim Imam, a former minority leader in the house of
representatives, Mohammed Umara Kumalia, a serving director of
finance at the federal ministry of agriculture, Idrissa Mamman
Gatumba and two others, all of the APC, who filed an appeal
challenging the October, 2018 governorship primaries in Borno State
which was won by Zulum.
Alhaji Idris Mamman-Gatumbwa among others had filled a petition
before Justice U. Onyemenam-led justices of the Appellate Court,
seeking it to upturn the judgment of Federal High Court, which
okayed his (Zulum) nomination as Borno APC governorship candidate
for the 2019 general elections.
The appellants had contested the governorship primaries under the
APC but lost to Zulum. After the election, they had approached the
Federal High Court sitting in Maiduguri asking the court to set
aside Zulum’s victory. They lost a preliminary objection at the
federal high court, lost an appeal in Jos, lost a fresh argument on
return to the federal high court in Maiduguri before filing another
appeal with reference number CA/J/174/2019 which they lost on
Friday.
Justice Onyemenam, while delivering judgment of the appellate
court, dismissed the appeal for lacking in merit.
“The appeal filed before this appellate by Alhaji Idris
Mamman-Gatumbwa, is statute barred and of no effect, as it is
lacking in merit.
“Looking at the nature of the case, the decision of the lower
court is therefore upheld and the appeal is hereby dismissed for
lack of merit,” Onyemenam declared.
The judge held that the case was filed before the lower court
after the statutory 14 days grace as stipulated by the Electoral
Act.
Justice Jude Dakat of Borno Federal High Court had dismissed the
petition of the appellant on the basis that it lacked merit.
Dakat had, in that judgment held that the petitions lacked merit
on the grounds that it was filed out of the 14 days grace to
challenge any discrepancy during party primaries as stipulated by
the electoral act.
Counsel for the appellant, Mr Ibrahim Bawa, SAN, had approached
the Appellate court to upturn the judgment of the Lower Court,
praying it to look into the merit of the case and order the party
to do the needful in accordance with the law.
He had prayed the court to upturn the decision of the Lower
Court, which failed to look at the merit of case but dismissed
it.
Bawa further stated that the lower court was wrong to declare
that “we were out of the 14 days.”
He also argued that Section 87 of the Electoral Act stipulates
that primaries not properly conducted should be nullified.
He had prayed the appellate court to allow the appeals.
By PRNigeria