Appeal Court declares Francis Agbo as Benue PDP House of Reps candidate

The Court of Appeal has declared a lawmaker, Mr Francis Agbo as the validly nominated candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency of Benue.

Delivering judgment on Thursday in Abuja, a three-member panel of the appellate court held that Ms Aida Ogwuche who was declared winner of the PDP primaries by the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) was not qualified to contest the election.

The panel led by Justice Bature Gafai held that Ogwuche was not qualified on the grounds that she was still a staff of the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) as at the time of the election.

The panel of justices said that Ogwuche ought to have resigned her employment from the FIRS before contesting in the primary election of the PDP.

“The decision of the lower court recognising the participation and election of the first respondent in the election is illegal and unlawful.”

The judge relied on Section 66 (I) (f) of the 1999 Constitution to declare Ogwuche’s election as unlawful and invalid.

The appellate court consequently, ordered INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Ogwuche and issue same to Agbo as the duly elected candidate of the PDP for the Ado/Okpokwu/ Ogbadibo federal constituency of Benue.

Our correspondent reports Agbo approached the Federal High Court sitting in Makurdi praying the court to disqualify Ogwuche’s candidacy on the grounds that she did not resign her appointment before contesting the election.

In his suit, Agbo had asked the court to disqualify Ogwuche’s on the grounds that she did not resign her employment with the FIRS 30 days before contesting, as stipulated by the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act as amended.

He argued that his opponent only resigned her engagement with FIRS two days after she won the party’s primary election.

Agbo, who is the Chairman, House Committee on Drugs and Narcotics also told the court that Ogwuche was also engaged by the Benue government as the principal special assistant to the governor.

The trial court, however, on Nov. 11, 2023, declared Ogwuche as the duly elected candidate of the PDP for the Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency.

Miffed by this decision, Agbo approached the appellate court to seek redress.
The aggrieved lawmaker in his appeal, asked the appellate court to determine whether the trial judge was right when he held that the primary election was not an election within the definition of
the expression in the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act.

“Therefore Ogwuche’s qualification to contest the primary election could not be challenged at that stage, the issue being whether a person holding office in the public service as a staff of the Federal Inland Revenue Service such
as Ogwuche, must resign from office before contesting the primary election.

“She failed to do on the grounds that her qualification could only be challenged after the general election.

”Whether the learned trial judge was right when he held, by.implication, that Ogwuche was not required to state her employment status in the expression of interest and nomination form.

“Also that the appellant had failed to draw the attention of the court to any part of the forms requiring such information and to that extent failed to discharge the burden of proof placed on him by law.

“Whether the trial judge was right when he held, by implication, that the concealment of information is different from deliberate giving of false information and therefore that Section 29 (5) and (6) of the Electoral Act is inapplicable to the case of the appellant.