Swear in PDP candidate, Appeal Court orders Kwara Assembly

TRACKING____An Appeal Court sitting in Ilorin on Tuesday ordered Kwara State House of Assembly to swear in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Jimoh Abdulraheem Agboola.

Recall that the Court of Appeal affirmed similar judgment delivered in November 2019.

The Court had declared the PDP candidate, Jimoh Abdulraheem Agboola as the winner of Ilorin South State Constituency election.

The judge ruled that Azeez Elewu Oluwanilo was never a candidate in the March 9 Assembly poll as the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not submit his name to INEC.

The court held that swapping of the certificate of return by Kwara APC to Oluwanilo is not only unlawful but null and void.

The judge ruled that Oluwanilo’s prayer to be joined has no substance and were mere conjectures to the law and were therefore discarded for lack of merit.

The court while dismissing the suit also awarded damage of N200,000 against the APC lawmaker for bringing such an issue to court.

The Appeal Court had on November 12, 2019, ruled that APC did not have a candidate for the election. “Thus, the next candidate that scored the next highest votes which is the PDP candidate by name, Jimoh Raheem Agboola be declared.”

Agboola, who is now the only PDP member-elect, challenged the eligibility of APC candidate and his party nomination process at the tribunal.

The Election Tribunal judgement to conduct a fresh election in Ilorin South state constituency was upturned by the Appeal Court.

Recall that the Independent National Electoral Commission in December 2019 issued a certificate of return to Agboola in compliance with court’s directives.