INEC right to reject Zamfara APC candidates, court rules

A federal high court in Abuja has upheld the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to accept the list of candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara state.

The commission based the action on the inability of the ruling party to conduct primary election before deadline.

Crisis had stalled the primary as supporters of Abdulaziz Yari, governor of the state, and Kabir Marafa, a senator, clashed over the exercise on different occasions.

INEC had refused to accept the appeal of the leadership of the party which argued that candidates could be adopted through consensus.

Some supporters of the party had headed to the court.

At the court on Friday, Ijeoma Ojukwu, the presiding judge, said it was not the fault of INEC that APC failed to conduct a valid primary within the scheduled period.

Onjukwu said INEC’s action was intended to curb impunity among political parties and politicians.

More to follow…