👤 Abdul Tukur, DENISAURUS News

The All Progressives Congress, APC will be able to field its Governorship candidate in the upcoming election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said. 

While the candidacy of Muhammadu Buhari, the Presidential candidate of the APC was not in question, INEC was not going to allow the ruling party field candidates for the Governorship, National Assembly and State Assembly as it said no primaries had taken place for that election.

But a court of appeal states that the primaries held by the party on October 3 and 7, 2018 was lawful. Even with the ruling from the court of appeal, th INEC insisted that it would not accept APC candidates in the NASS, Governorship and State House of Assembly election scheduled to hold on February 23rd and March 9.

INEC has now made a u-turn and would now field APC candidates in the upcoming elections.  In the ruling delivered by Justice Abdul Abok, of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, the  lower court ruling that previously prevented the ruling party from contesting, did not have jurisdiction, hence “the judgement of the lower court is hereby set aside.”

This comes a few days after Abubakar Malami, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice asked the election body not to “foreclose” the right of the party to participate in the elections.

“The Commission has today in compliance with the said order restored the APC to the ballot in the National Assembly, Governorship and State House of Assembly elections scheduled for 23rd February and 9th March 2019,” Festus Okoye, national commissioner, stated in a statement seen by DENISAURUS News.

The AGF a Senior Advocate of Nigeria at the time said the an Appeal supersedes the Federal High Court’s Position in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1279/2018- ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS (APC) V. INEC & 5 ORS.”

He noted that the Court of Appeal “has upheld the Primaries as valid, the APC in Zamfara State will need a little time to catch up with its contemporaries in the election. Granting them this concession is not necessarily a favour but a right that inures to all contestants under similar circumstances.

“Consequent on the above, INEC is invited to comply with the judgement of the Court of Appeal by admitting the results of the APC Zamfara State Primaries and to also comply with the provisions of S.38 of the Electoral Act which empowers INEC to postpone the election for the governorship, National Assembly and House of Assembly Elections.”

in view of the ruling by Justice Aboki, Festus Okoye, national commissioner of the INEC on Friday said, “The Commission has today in compliance with the said order restored the APC to the ballot in the National Assembly, Governorship and State House of Assembly elections scheduled for 23rd February and 9th March 2019.”

READ ALSO : 2019POLLS : The AGF Says He WANTS INEC TO POSTPONE ELECTIONS In Zamfara State