A former lawmaker representing Kogi West Senator Smart Adeyemi has vowed to approach the Court of Appeal to void the governorship primary election by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi state.
Speaking through his counsel, Adeyemi insisted that the trial court failed to properly evaluate the proof of evidence that was placed before it by the parties, insisting that there were inconsistencies in the report that was tendered by the INEC and affidavit that was deposed by the APC.
Adeyemi alleged that, whereas INEC claimed that option A4 mode was adopted for the primary election it monitored, the APC told the court that the election was through secret ballot.
The former lawmaker had in a 35 paragraph affidavit he filed in support of his originating summons by his team of lawyers led by Dr Adekunle Ottitoju, had prayed the court to order the APC to conduct a fresh primary election and to give all aspirants equal opportunity as prescribed by the Electoral Act, 2022.
In his suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/556/2023, Adeyemi sought the cancellation of the primary election on the ground that it was not validly conducted and prayed the court to declare as illegal, unlawful and invalid, the purported direct primary election said to have been conducted by the APC, through which Ododo emerged as a candidate for the governorship poll.
Senator Adeyemi told the court that Ododo was handpicked as flag-bearer of the party by the outgoing Governor of the state, Yahaya Bello, in gross violation of Section 177 of the 1999 Constitution, Section 29 and 84 of the Electoral Act as well as Article 20 of the Constitution of the APC.
However, in his judgment on Wednesday, Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja held that Adeyemi did not prove his allegation that Ododo was not lawfully nominated by the APC.
