Donald Duke, the Presidential
Candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), has said he will appeal the
judgment removing him as the party’s presidential flag bearer.
Recall that a
Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday declared Prof. Jerry Gana, a
former Nigerian Minister of Information, as the presidential candidate of the
SDP.
Duke had been declared as the
presidential candidate of the party after the primary election held in October
2018 in which Gana was also an aspirant.
However, Gana instituted a case
against the result in court, basing his case on the zoning and rotation formula
of the party.
Giving his ruling, Justice
Hussein Baba-Yusuf said: “In this instance, the party’s Chairman, Chief Olu
Falae, is from the South and Duke is from the South too; the law is clear;
there is nothing to write in-between.
“The law has crystallised that
political parties should abide by the regulations which they have made by
themselves.
“The claimant laid sufficient
evidence to have the judgment in his favour; it is a clear violation of the
party’s constitution; the court cannot wave right over illegality.”
“Duke’s votes were declared null
and void and the judge declared that Gana was the winner of the election.
“The SDP was also ordered to
forward Gana’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) as
its candidate for the 2019 general election.
But, reacting, Duke told NAN in
Lagos that: “While we await a copy of the judgement for a detailed review, it
is imperative we reiterate our constitutionally backed belief.
“Every Nigerian who meets the
legal requirement is entitled to contest for the office of the President.
“Any Law that seeks to curtail or
subvert that right under any guise is unconstitutional, null and void and of no
effect.
“The delegates of our great party
at its Convention in October, overwhelmingly elected me as their presidential
flag-bearer
“Any attempt to subvert their
wishes through the instrumentality of the courts will be challenged.
“As a Law abiding citizen, I urge
my supporters and members to remain calm as we are confident that the decision
of the Court will be upturned on appeal.
“We are optimistic that the
Appellate Court will reach a decision that reinforces the essential tenets of
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” NAN quoted him as saying.
Duke added that his optimism was
in line with the wishes of members of the Social Democratic Party.
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