http://www.newsportng.com.ng Legal Adviser, Labour Party, (LP) Kaduna state, Sir Ben Churchill Aniekwena, has said that candidates that contested election under the party are competent and qualified to run for any elective positions in the country.
Ben made this known in Kaduna on Friday while responding to the petition filed by the opposition People’s Democratic Party, ( PDP) challenging the election of Hon. Ekene Abubakar Adams as Member-elect Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency.
According to him, Ekene and other candidates were duly screened by the party and were found suitable before given the opportunity to serve as the party’s flag-bearer.
He added that necessary documents were tendered before the screening committee, stressing that they have responded to the petition and would prove it properly before the tribunal.
He said, “It’s our mandate. INEC has returned us as duly elected. Certificate of return has already been issued in compliance with the law.
“So we are here with prayers that the court should uphold our candidates as the duly elected Members of the federal house of representatives for Chikun/Kajuru and Kaura Federal Constituencies.
“Only the PDP are challenging the outcome of the election in court whereas the election was free and fair to the knowledge of everybody.
“I want to maintain that we are duly qualified and competent. They were screened we screened our candidates and we found them duly qualified. We have all our documents and we are going to prove it when the time comes.” He said.
Also speaking with Journalists shortly after the sitting, the Counsel to PDP’s Hon. Yakubu Umar Barde, Samuel Atung, SAN said the case is seeking for the disqualification of LP’s Ekene Abubakar Adams on the ground that he does not have the required certificate as stipulated by law to contest the election in the first place.
He said their prayer is for the court to disqualify Ekene Abubakar Adams and declare their candidate, Barde who came second as the duly elected Member of Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency.
Responding to the petition, Muhammed Sani (ESQ) who is the Counsel to Hon. Ekene Abubakar Adams, said he has responded to the petitions tendered before the Tribunal and it is left for the court to decide whether the petitioner have a good case or not.
Sani argued that, “We are even saying the petition itself is faulty and that the tribunal should not grant it any attention to avoid wasting it’s time.
“One of the faulty aspect of it is that the petition does not meet the timeline requirements as specified by law. So the petition is supposed to be struck out according to the position of law.” He noted.
The court has adjourned to May, 22nd 2023, to hear Sani’s request demanding that the case be struck out from the Tribunal for lack of jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, Widows, Advocates for good governance and members of other support groups in solidarity with Ekene were also cited, with different placards carrying different inscriptions, “no more 20-years of poor representation, we say no to slavery, Chikun/Kajuru is free at last, among others, saying that they turned out en masse to defend their mandate.
