In a judgment on Sunday, a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Elphreda Williams-Dawodu ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Mutfwang and issue a fresh one to Nentawe Goshwe of the APC whom the court declared as the valid winner of the March 18 governorship election.

Mutfwang was the third opposition governor to be sacked by the Court of Appeal within three days.

Last Thursday, the appellate court nullified the election of another PDP Governor, Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State, declaring that the governorship election in the state was inconclusive.

The following day, the same court invalidated the election of the Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, of the New Nigeria Peoples Party

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Worried by the serial losses suffered by their governors and lawmakers at the courts, the PDP Deputy Legal Adviser, Okechukwu Osuoha, declared that the recent court judgments were not in tandem with the law.

But the Director of Publicity for the APC, Bala Ibrahim, riposted that it was people who did not understand how the judicial process works that were accusing both the APC and the Presidency of trying to turn Nigeria into a one-party state.

Mutfwang of the PDP had scored 525,299 votes while the candidate of the APC, Goshwe polled 481,370 votes in the March 18 governorship election in the state.

Goshwe challenged the victory of Mutfwang at the tribunal claiming that the governor was not validly nominated and sponsored by his party.

He also said there was non-compliance with the Electoral Act in the election.

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The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal had dismissed his petition for lacking in merit, but Goshwe headed to the appellate court.

However, Justice Williams-Dawodu, in the lead judgment, set aside the decision of the tribunal.

The judge held that Mutfwang was not validly sponsored by the PDP and that he was not qualified to have contested the election because the PDP did not conduct valid state, local government, and ward congresses ordered by a High Court of Plateau State and it had no structure as at the time of the election.

Citing section 177 of the Constitution, she held that the governor was not validly sponsored by the PDP during the election.

She held that the party violated a court order, directing it to conduct a valid congress in the 17 Local Government Areas of that state.

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Williams-Dawodu said there was no evidence that the PDP complied with a subsisting High Court order which had directed it to conduct the party congress prior to its sponsorship of the governorship and other candidates.

The court held that the issue of qualification is both a pre-election and a post-election matter contrary to the findings of the tribunal which held that the appellant lacked the locus to contest the validity of the respondent.

The court also noted that under section 134 of the Electoral Act, it is the sole right of a political party to sponsor its candidate having met the necessary requirements to do so.

She then ordered INEC to retrieve the certificate of return issued to the governor and issue a fresh certificate of return to the Goshwe.

Williams-Dawodu said,” The judgment of the Tribunal affirming the election of Governor Caleb stands to be set aside. The appeal is hereby allowed. The issue is resolved in favour of the appellants.”

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PDP kicks

Speaking on the verdict, the Deputy PDP legal adviser, Osuoha, who said he did not have a copy of the judgment yet explained that there were three grounds for the election petition matter.

He said, “One is that when somebody is claiming that he won an election with the most number of valid votes, the person will have to prove it. The second is malpractice; the person who alleged would have to prove it.

“Then qualification; whether the person was qualified or not. So these are the grounds. It is in the public domain that Nigerians and PDP are not too comfortable with judgment from the courts.

“In the ruling party, APC, impunity is so much. They try to influence some of these institutions to force their party on Nigerians. That is the ugly side of it.”

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Osuoha stressed that “Most of the recent judgments are not really in tandem with the law. Most times the justices come up with technicalities.

“The court now portrays itself as a court of technicalities and not a court of justice and it is not too palatable for our system, our country, and democracy.”

The lawyer noted there is still a window for the party and Mutfwang to appeal the judgment.

“The people hold the judiciary in high esteem so that confidence should not be eroded.”

“Nigeria is suffering today because most of our institutions are not strong. I believe that our legal system, our Court should stand out. The court should be impartial in their decisions,” he admonished.

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Also, PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor alleged that   “the highest bidders were getting favourable rulings.’’

Osadolor warned “The clock is ticking and the thin patience of our people is running out. Our judges should remember the heroes past or become today’s heroes by excusing themselves from money-tainted judgments and pronouncements.

“Some people want to force APC on Nigerians, but we will resist it.”

Judicial rascality

Meanwhile, the New Nigerian People’s Party’s National Auditor, Ladipo Johnson described the judgment as part of the  “judicial rascality that is unfolding.’’

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Johnson in an interview with our correspondent declared that APC has a long way to go to foist itself on Nigerians.

He said “The bottom line is that the judiciary have put themselves on trial because of some inconsistent principle that we are seeing. Most recent judgments by the judiciary are very troubling to a lot of us in the Country.”