The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike has sued the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the conduct of the party’s presidential primary, The Punch reports.
Wike, who polled 237 votes, lost to Atiku, who scored 371 votes, at the primary held on May 28 and May 29.
At the PDP presidential primary, when aspirants were asked to address delegates, Tambuwal had asked delegates to vote for him but returned shortly afterwards to ask them to vote for Atiku.
Atiku won the primary and clinched the presidential ticket.
After the convention, National Chairman of PDP, Iyorchia Ayu, described Tambuwal as the “hero of the convention.”
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/782/2022, Wike and another PDP chieftain, Newgent Ekamon, who are the second and first plaintiffs respectively, are asking the Federal High Court to eight issues including whether the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku by the PDP was illegal and void.
In the originating summons, the PDP, INEC, Tambuwal and Atiku are listed as the first to fourth respondents respectively.
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The plaintiffs are also asking the court to determine if Tambuwal lost his claim to votes the moment he stepped down for Atiku
The plaintiffs argued that should the issues be determined in their favour, nine reliefs should be granted, including a declaration that the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku is null and void.
Wike and Ekamon are also praying for a declaration that the PDP acted negligently and in bad faith by assigning Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku.
They asked the court to “cancel the transfer of votes and a corresponding order restraining the 3rd respondent (Tambuwal’s) withdrawal in the primary was done after voting had commenced.”
The plaintiffs further prayed the court to declare that the PDP and Atiku took undue advantage of Tambuwal’s withdrawal when they allowed the Sokoto governor to persuade delegates to vote for the former Vice-President in the primary.
Wike and Ekamon asked the court to order INEC to reject or remove Atiku from “its list of candidates in the 2023 presidential election.”
They are also seeking an order commanding the PDP to recount the votes of the primary that was held on May 28 and May 29.
The plaintiffs are seeking an order of the court “directing the 1st respondent (PDP) to declare the 2nd applicant (Wike), a presidential aspirant in the May 28 and May 29 primary as the winner of the aforesaid primary with a corresponding order directing the 1st respondent (PDP) to forward his name as the candidate to contest the presidential election in 2023.”
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