ADAMAWA STATE :COURT DECLARED TO DISQUALIFIED GOVERNOR BINDOW OVER ALLEGED CERTIFICATE FORGERY.

2 hours ago

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA — An Abuja High Court sitting at Apo, yesterday, declare to disqualify Governor Mohammed Bindow of Adamawa State from seeking re-election on Saturday, following allegation that he tendered fake certificates to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

">Governor Jibrilla Bindow

The court, in a judgment delivered by Justice Olukayode Adeniyi, dismissed the suit lodged against Governor Bindow by an international non-governmental organisation that said it was concerned with the advancement of accountability and transparent governance in Nigeria.

The group, Incorporated Trustees of Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International, had in the suit marked FCT/CV/518/2018, alleged that Bindow supplied false information to INEC in the Form CF001 he used to secure clearance to participate in the coming governorship election.

It alleged that Bindow had in the form he submitted on October 25, 2018, claimed to have sat for the West   African Examination Council, WAEC exam, in June, 1983 and possesses General Certificate of Education, GCE, issued by the examination body.

It alleged that the governor who was sued as the 1st defendant, falsely declared his educational qualification and date of birth for the purpose of securing nomination ticket of the All Progressives Congress, APC, to contest in the 2019 general elections.

Meanwhile, Justice Adeniyi dismissed the suit on the premise that the Abuja court lacked the territorial jurisdiction to inquire into whether or not the information submitted by somebody who seeks to contest election in Adamawa State were false or not.

Justice Adeniyi said since the information Bindow supplied to INEC were published in Adamawa State, as required under Section 31(3), the cause of action could be said to have occurred in Adamawa where the Claimant obtained the information contained in the said Form CF001.

Besides, the court said it was an abuse of court process and an act of forum shopping, for the Claimant to have travelled to Abuja to challenge an alleged infraction that took place in Adamawa State, where available courts could have safely dealt with issues raised.

He said the allegations against Bindow contained criminal elements that required to be proved beyond every reasonable doubt.

However, the court dismissed preliminary objections both Bindow and INEC filed to challenge the locus standi of the Claimant to institute the action.

Specifically, the group had urged the court to invoke section 35(6) of the Electoral Act to disqualify and restrain Bindow from parading himself as eligible to participate in weekend’s governorship election in Adamawa State.

Bindow and INEC described the Claimant as “a busy body and meddlesome interloper”, saying it failed to prove the injury it suffered as a result of the alleged infractions.

It was equally the contention of the defendants that the suit, being a pre-election matter, had become status barred by virtue of section 285(9) of the 4th Alteration to the 1999 Constitution, since the Claimant failed to approach the court 14 days after the said Form CF001 was submitted to INEC.

They noted that whereas the form was submitted on October 25, 2018, the group filed the suit on December 12, 2018.

While dismissing all the objections, Justice Adeniyi held that the Claimant possessed the necessary legal right to institute the suit.

He noted though that section 285(9) of the 4th Alteration to the 1999 Constitution only forbade aspirants and political parties from filing pre-election matters after 14 days of the occurrence of the action complained of.

Justice Adeniyi said the Claimant, being a corporate entity not expressly included in the statute of limitation, could not be circumscribed to the 14 days time fame.

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