Supreme Court Refuses To Sack Tinubu, Shettima Over ‘Double Nomination’ Appeal

• Insists PDP lacks locus standi to institute case

BY VICTOR BUORO – As expected in legal circles, the Supreme Court has dismissed a suit seeking the disqualification of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, and the Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima, over allegations of double nomination.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), through their counsel, Mike Ozekhome (SAN), had brought the appeal before the apex Court alleging that Shettima had double nomination as the senatorial candidate for Borno Central Senatorial District and vice-presidential candidate under the All Progressives Congress (APC). 

However, the apex court, in a unanimous decision by its five-member panel on Friday, held that an appeal the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) filed to challenge the legality of Tinubu’s candidacy, lacked merit since the opposition party was not a member of the APC.

In its lead judgment delivered by Justice Adamu Jauro, the Supreme Court held that PDP lacked the locus standi (legal right) to interfere in the affairs of APC which nominated both Tinubu and Shettima for the presidential poll.

Upholding decisions of the Federal High Court in Abuja and the Court of Appeal, which earlier dismissed the case, the apex Court agreed with the respondents that section 285 (14) (c ) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and section 149 of the Electoral Act, 2022, did not confer the locus standi (legal right) to challenge the candidature of Shettima on the ground of double nomination.

It further ruled that section 84 of the Electoral Act only empowered an aspirant that participated in the primary election of a political party, to challenge the nomination of a party’s candidate, noting that the PDP failed to establish the injury it suffered as a result of the nomination by the APC.

Additionally, the apex court stressed that the law does not permit a political party to dabble in the domestic affairs of another political party and the PDP regrettably was unable to prove that its civil rights and obligations were in danger of being infringed upon.

Further describing the appeal as the action of “a nosy busy-body and a meddlesome interloper that is peeping into the affairs of its neighbour”, the apex court slammed the PDP for filing the appeal which it said was frivolous and capable of exposing the judiciary to public ridicule.

The apex court held that evidence before it showed Shettima duly withdrew as the APC candidate in the Borno senatorial election on July 6, 2022, adding; “In whichever angle this appeal is viewed, it is frivolous and bound to fail. From the trial court, down to this court, it has been a waste of precious judicial time.

“The instant appeal was unnecessary and counsel should do better to advise their client against filing this sort of suit in the future”.

In dismissing the appeal, the Supreme Court awarded the sum of N2 million as damages against the PDP and in favour of the respondents.

The Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal had earlier dismissed the case for lack of locus standi with N5 million as a cost against the PDP.

Dissatisfied with the ruling, the main opposition party approached the apex court, requesting that the matter be heard on its merit and determine the grounds set out for the suit.

In the appeal marked: SC/CV/501/2023, the PDP had sought Tinubu’s disqualification on the premise that the Vice President-elect, Senator Kashim Shettima, allowed himself to be nominated for more than one constituency, ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Filed on July 28, 2022, the PDP claimed in the suit that the double nomination breached the provisions of sections 29(1), 33, 35, and 84 (1)(2) of the Electoral Act, 2022 as amended.

According to the PDP, Senator Shettima was still the nominated senatorial candidate on July 14, 2022, having emerged in the May primary of the APC, when he was again nominated as the Vice Presidential candidate of the ruling party.

The opposition Party also submitted that Shettima withdrew his senatorial nomination on July 15, 2022, and was by then in breach of Section 33 on multiple nominations.

Aside from urging the court to nullify Tinubu and Shettima’s candidacy, the Appellant equally applied for an order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to expunge their names from the list of nominated or sponsored candidates that were eligible to contest the presidential poll.

But ruling on January 13, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, dismissed the case on the grounds that the PDP lacked the locus standi to file it in the first instance.