Five residents of the federal capital territory (FCT) have
sued the attorney-general of the federation (AGF) and the chief justice of
Nigeria (CJN) over the inauguration of Bola Tinubu as the nation’s president.
Tinubu, the standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress
(APC), was declared the February 25 presidential poll winner with 8,794,726
votes.
However, the plaintiffs aver that Tinubu failed to secure at
least 25 percent of votes cast in the FCT.
The suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/578/2023 was filed before the
federal high court in Abuja on April 28.
The plaintiffs — Anyaegbunam Okoye, David Adzer, Jeffrey
Ucheh Osang Paul and Chibuike Nwanchukwu — sued for themselves and on behalf of
other residents and registered voters in the FCT.
They are asking the court to determine “whether or not the
person who is to be elected president of the federal republic of Nigeria, and
consequently administrator of the FCT through the Minister of the Federal
Capital Territory and the Federal Capital Territory Development Authority, on
the first ballot is required by section 134(2)(b) of the Constitution to obtain
at least 25% of the votes cast in the FCT”.
“Whether the plaintiffs and other residents and registered
voters in the FCT Abuja would not be discriminated against if any state within
the federal republic of Nigeria were substituted for the FCT.”
Should the questions for determination be answered in the
affirmative, the plaintiffs are praying for a declaration that “no candidate in
the February 25th presidential election may validly be sworn in as president
and commander in chief of the armed forces of the federal republic of Nigeria
without such candidate having obtained 25% of the votes cast in the Federal
Capital Territory, Abuja”.
The plaintiffs also want a declaration extending President
Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure pending when a successor is determined in accordance
with the constitution.
They want the court to set aside the certificate of return
issued to Tinubu and restrain the CJN and any other judicial officer from
swearing in any candidate in the presidential election as president or
vice-president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria until the issue is determined
in court.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) has said a candidate must not secure 25 percent of the votes in the FCT
to be declared winner because the FCT was not accorded any special status in
the constitution as being “erroneously” portrayed.
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