Advertisement

The Rivers governor has exhibited strained ties with both the party and its 2023 standard-bearer over the outcome of the May 28 national convention and presidential primary.

Governor Nyesom Wike has filed a lawsuit against Atiku Abubakar over the 2023 presidential ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Advertisement

Mr Wike filed the lawsuit alongside another PDP member Michael Ekamon, according to filings entered before the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court. The applicants also joined the PDP, Governor Aminu Tambuwal and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the matter.

The parties were served on July 1, and a PDP official responded to the originating summons on August 5 in Abuja. The lawsuit could complicate the main opposition party’s drive and message leading to the 2023 general elections — for a platform already bogged down by the upswing of Peter Obi and his Labour Party base.

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/782/2022, Wike and a PDP chieftain, Newgent Ekamon, are listed as the plaintiffs. In the originating summons, the PDP is listed as the first respondent while the Independent National Electoral Commission is the 2nd respondent. Tambuwal and Atiku are listed as the 3rd and 4th respondents respectively.

Advertisement

During the PDP presidential primary, when aspirants were asked to address delegates, Tambuwal had asked them to vote for him only to return moments later to ask them to vote for Atiku.

At the primary, Atiku polled 371 votes while Wike and Bukola Saraki garnered 237 and 70 votes respectively. After the convention, the National Chairman of the PDP, Iyorchia Ayu, described Tambuwal as the “hero of the convention.”

In the originating summons, Wike and his co-applicant asked the court to determine eight issues including whether the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku by the PDP was illegal and void.

The plaintiffs asked the court to determine if Tambuwal lost his claim to votes the moment he stepped down for Atiku.

Advertisement

He asked the court to determine whether Tambuwal “having stepped down during the primaries ought to lose his votes.”

Wike and Ekamon argued that should these issues be determined in their favour, the court should grant nine reliefs including a declaration that the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku be declared null and void.

The plaintiffs are also seeking a declaration that the PDP acted negligently and in bad faith by assigning the Sokoto governor’s votes to Atiku at the primary.

Advertisement

They prayed 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 applicants also 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.

Lastly, the applicants 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.”

In a supporting affidavit he deposed to, Ekamon noted that he was a member of the PDP and attested to the fact that Wike won the presidential election.

He maintained that Tambuwal withdrew from the contest after voting had commenced and directed that his votes be assigned to Atiku.

This suit comes as a reconciliation panel begins sitting to resolve a cold war between Messrs Abubakar and Wike over the outcome of the presidential primary and the selection of a running mate by Mr Abubakar. The crisis escalated last week when Mr Wike publicly accused Mr Abubakar of lying about the extent of the infighting while allegedly instigating attacks through Sule Lamido and others, calling them “attack dogs.”

Mr Wike has been seething over the convention outcome for several weeks, and his anger intensified after Mr Abubakar passed him over for Ifeanyi Okowa as the vice-presidential candidate. Mr Abubakar said competence and loyalty weighed heavily in his considerations for a running mate.

Mr Wike came second during the primary, scoring 237 votes to trail Mr Abubakar, who polled 371 votes from the total 767 votes cast at the convention ground in Abuja. The Rivers governor blamed his defeat on Mr Tambuwal’s decision to step down for Mr Abubakar at the last minute, describing the process as unfair — even though he did not argue that it violated the party’s standing rules.

A spokesman for Mr Abubakar did not immediately return a request seeking comments about the suit. Messages sent to a PDP spokesman did not deliver on Thursday evening. But sources close to the former vice-president said he had a meeting with his legal team at Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja on Wednesday night, although it was unconfirmed whether Mr Wike’s lawsuit was among the issues discussed.

(Peoples Gazette/Punch)