Date: 2012-03-27

A Federal High Court in Abuja will today deliver judgement in the suit brought before it by Alhaji Ayinla Kolawole Jimoh challenging the election of the immediate past governor of Kwara state, Dr. Bukola Saraki as the Senator representing Kwara Central senatorial district under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

At the last hearing of the matter, counsels in the suit adopted their written addresses, after which the trial judge, Justice Ibrahim Auta adjourned till March 27 to decide whether Saraki is the authentic candidate of the PDP for last year's senatorial election in Kwara state.

The plaintiff, a second Republic gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), joined the PDP, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and former governor Saraki as co-defendants in the matter.

Alhaji Jimoh is arguing that at the time of collection and submission of nomination forms for the senatorial election, Saraki was a presidential contestant and that Saraki' s election as the PDP senatorial candidate for the senatorial district at the re-run of the party primary election held in Ilorin, January 29, 2011, was illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.

The plaintiff is also seeking to restrain the PDP from authenticating, recognising, or accepting the result of the re-run primary election and the nomination of the former governor as the PDP senatorial candidate for the Kwara Central senatorial district.

Jimoh said that he paid for, and was duly issued with the nomination form to seek nomination as the PDP senatorial candidate in the district, adding also that, "apart from me, one Gold Sola Isiaka from Ilorin-West of the Kwara-Central district was also screened and cleared to contest the primaries of the party."

Jimoh said himself and Isiaka were the only persons that contested the party' s ticket at the primary elections held on January 7, 2011, adding that at the end of the primary election, he was credited with 12 votes while Isiaka was credited with 1,064 votes and he (Isiaka) was accordingly declared the winner. 

He said that while at home on Friday, January 28, 2011, the secretary of the Kwara State PDP, Yekini Ilobu, brought him a letter from the state chapter of the party, stating that Mr. Isiaka, the elected senatorial candidate of the party had withdrawn and a proposed re-run election was slated for January 29, 2011. 

He said that at the re-run primary election, Saraki and one Yunus AbdulRahaman were listed as the aspirants.

He further stated that by the result of the re-run election, Dr. Saraki was declared the winner with over 1000 votes and the result was sent to the INEC against the spirit of internal democracy and democratic governance.