The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 presidential election, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has informed the Presidential Election Petition Court that his running mate, Senator Shettima Kashim, is eminently qualified to contest the 2023 presidential election.
Tinubu made the application in his response to the petition filed by Mr. Peter Gregory Obi and his party, the Labour Party (LP) before the Tribunal, which has the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senator Shettima Kashim and the All Progressives Congress as Respondents.
In his response, Tinubu claimed that as at July 14, 2022, when he was nominated as the APC vice presidential candidate, Shettima was no longer APC’s Senatorial candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial election.
According to him, the Notice of withdrawal signed by Shettima on July 6, 2022, was conveyed by officials on the July 15, 2022, to INEC to enable APC present him to INEC as its Vice Presidential candidate.
He further claimed that the date on the Notice of withdrawal is not the date Shettima withdrew from contesting as a senatorial candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial Election.
He cited the mandatory provisions of Section 84(14) of the Electoral Act, 2022 vis-a-vis Section 285 (14) (b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).
Tinubu noted that the issue of nomination of the 3rd Respondent (Shettima), being a pre-election matter, can only be pursued by an aggrieved party vide a pre-election suit that is validly filed and as such.
Therefore, “this court/tribunal is not the appropriate forum to entertain same,” stated.
He added: “The 2nd Respondent was at the time of the election, eminently qualified to contest the presidential election held on the 25th day of February 2023.
“The 2nd Respondent withdrew as the Respondent’s candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial district election on the 6th day of July 2022.
“The Respondent shall at the hearing of this petition, rely on the 3rd Respondent’s letter of voluntary withdrawal written to the 1st Respondent (INEC), dated 6th day of July, 2022.
“As at 14th day of July 2022, when he was nominated as the vice presidential candidate of the Respondent, the 2nd Respondent was no longer the Respondent’s Senatorial candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial election.
“The Form EC11C (Notice of withdrawal) signed by the 3rd Respondent on 6th July, 2022, was merely conveyed by the officials of the 1st Respondent on the 15th day of July 2022, to the lst Respondent to enable the 4th Respondent present 3rd Respondent to INEC as its Vice Presidential candidate.
“That the date on the said Form EC11C (15th July 2022) is not at all the date the 3rd Respondent withdrew from contesting as a senatorial candidate of the Respondent for the Borno Central Senatorial Election.
“The final list of duly nominated candidates published by 1st Respondent more than 150 days before the election, in respect of office of Vice President and Borno Central Senatorial District for the purpose of the February, 2023 general election, may be founded upon to show that the decision of INEC in that regard was never challenged at all or within the time allowed to so do as stipulated by section 285 of the Constitution, assuming that it was open to the Petitioners herein to question same,” he asserted.
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