APC move to stop Enugu LG poll, drags INEC, ENSIEC to court

Moses Oyediran, Enugu

Barely one week to the Enugu State Local Government Election, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has moved to stop the November 4 poll after it dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the Enugu State Independent National Electoral Commission, ENSIEC, to court.

Daily Times recalled that the electoral commission had last week disqualified 73 candidates of the APC and other political parties excerpt Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from participating in the election, but reversed itself last Thursday.

However, last Friday the APC filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Enugu to compel both INEC and ENSIEC to publish the names of its 260 candidates for the councillorship and 17 candidates for chairmanship positions the party submitted to them.

The state chairman of APC, Dr. Ben Nwoye, as well as Messrs Okoye Hillary Monday and Philip Ogechukwu Eze as plaintiffs on behalf of other candidates; while the ENSIEC and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, are joined as 1st and 2nd defendants, respectively.

In a motion on notice brought pursuant to Order 26&28 of the Federal High Court Rules, 2009, the party is seeking.

“An order mandating the first respondent to publish the list of names of the 260 candidates for councilorship positions of various wards and 17 candidates for local government chairmen submitted to them by the applicants as their validly nominated candidates to contest for the November 2017 Local Government/councilorship election pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

The party is equally asking for “An order restraining the 2nd respondent from releasing the voters’ registers of Enugu State to the 1st respondent for the purpose of conducting and organizing the chairmanship and councilorship elections in the local government areas of Enugu State until the names of the candidates presented by the applicants are included and published as candidates for the various area councils/wards they represent, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

“An order restraining the 1st respondent from conducting the local government chairmanship/councilorship elections without including and publishing the names of candidates submitted by the applicant to contest, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”

The plaintiffs claimed that according to the law, they “submitted to the 1st respondent the list of her qualified and nominated candidates for the November 4th local government election in Enugu State as the umpire in the election.

“The first defendant without any powers under any known law verified, screened and purportedly disqualified candidates of the plaintiff without any reason.

“The first defendant without any reason failed and/or neglected to publish the voters’ register of voters in Enugu State 30 days before the election as required by the law.”