Court Orders Aiyedatiwa, Others To File Defence.

Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the Ondo State Governor,

Lucky Aiyedatiwa, the All Progressives Congress, and the Independent

National Electoral Commission to file their defence in a suit seeking to nullify

Aiyedatiwa’s candidacy in the upcoming gubernatorial election in the state,

slated for November.

The Senator representing Ondo South, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim, had

approached the court to void Aiyedatiwa’s win from the April 20 APC

governorship primary election held in Ondo state, while, the court to declare

that Aiyedatiwa was not a valid candidate for the party because the party did

not comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.

Ibrahim, who participated and was a governorship aspirant in the said

primary election, prayed to the Court to delist APC and Aiyedatiwa from the

political parties and candidates that would participate in the gubernatorial

poll, and insisted that the party did not comply with its regulations and

guidelines in the conduct of the poll.

The plaintiff’s counsel, Chris Uche, (SAN) said, he received a memorandum of

conditional appearance from APC and INEC’s lawyer but was yet to receive

any application from Aiyedatiwa, adding that, the defendants were yet to file

their defence.

APC’s lead counsel, Tayo Oyetibo, who also told the court that they had

written a letter to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, requesting for

transfer of the case from Abuja to Ondo State said, he couldn’t understand

why the suit was filed in Abuja instead of Ondo state.