DAILY COURIER

 

David Arin – The Court of Appeal, Sokoto, has dismissed an application filed by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Zamfara, Dr Dauda Lawal, challenging the ruling of a Federal High Court in Gusau, Zamfara State.

 

The High court had nullified the primary election which produced Lawal as the governorship candidate of the PDP for the 2023 election in Zamfara State.

 

Ibrahim Shehu, a gubernatorial aspirant of the PDP in Zamfara State had challenged the emergence of Dr Lawal as the PDP candidate in the state.

 

Shehu had alleged that the election that returned him as the governorship candidate of the Party was marred by irregularities.

 

He had approached a Federal High Court Gusau, which later nullified the primary and ordered PDP to conduct a rerun within 14 days.

 

The PDP complied with the judgement, conducted the rerun and Lawal reemerged.

 

Shehu again approached the same High Court insisting there was no election, a claim which the court also affirmed.

 

In its ruling, the court barred the PDP from the 2023 governorship election in Zamfara State.

 

Ruling on Wednesday, in an appeal filed by Lawal against the ruling of the Lower Court, the appellate court in a unanimous judgement of a panel of judges led by Justice Muhammad Shuaibu, held that Lawal’s appeal was an abuse of judicial process.

 

The court held that the appellant had no right to appeal the judgement he had already complied with.

 

It, therefore, awarded N100,000 against the appellant to be paid to the respondents.

 

Responding, the lawyer to the appellant, Aminu Aliyu, said his client had the opportunity of appealing the judgement in the Supreme Court.

 

Also, the lawyer to the respondent, Ndiana Anaka, said the judgement was a victory for democracy and rule of law.