IBUKUNOLUWA KING-OKUNEYE
The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has urged a Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a suit seeking his disqualification for nominating his campaign manager, Doyin Okupe, as his placeholder.
The Peoples Democratic Party had asked the court to stop Obi from replacing Okupe as his running mate last week.
The party also pleaded with the court to prevent Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, from replacing Kabiru Masari as his running mate.
In the suit, PDP asked the court to disqualify both Obi and Tinubu if they replace Okupe and Masari as their running mate respectively.
However, both candidates replaced their placeholders. Obi picked Datti Yusuf Baba-Ahmed as his running mate, while Tinubu went for Kashim Shettima.
Responding to the originating motion, via a notice of preliminary objection, dated July 18, Obi’s counsel, Mr Alex Ejesieme (SAN), sought an order of the court striking out or dismissing PDP’s suit “for want of requisite jurisdiction.”
The objection by Obi to the PDP’s prayers is based on four grounds.
“The plaintiff’s suit is speculative, conjectural in nature and devoid of hard facts, thereby divesting this court of jurisdiction to adjudicate over same,” read the first ground.
Also, Obi’s counsel said that the PDP “has not disclosed any reasonable cause of action to activate the jurisdiction” of the court.
Obi’s counsel added that the PDP’s suit “is not situated within the jurisdictional confines of the Federal High Court”.
“The plaintiff’s suit is a gross abuse of court process,” Obi’s counsel added.
