2027: Court dismisses suit seeking to void Donald Duke’s PRP presidential candidacy

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, dismissed a suit challenging the emergence of former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, as presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP).

The trial judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, held in a judgment on Wednesday that the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1234/2026, filed by an aggrieved PRP presidential aspirant, Mr Yakubu Kingsley, was statute-barred.

The judge upheld the preliminary objections raised against the competence of the suit by Duke and the party and further held that the suit, being a pre-election matter, was filed in violation of the provision of Section 285(9) of the Constitution.

Justice Umar said, having been filed on June 10, 16 days after the results of the PRP’s presidential primary election conducted on May 25 was made public, it was statute-barred and faulted Kingsley’s contention that the 14-day limit allowed by the Constitution for the filing of pre-election cases ought to start counting from June 6 when the party’s appeal committee wrote to him to communicate its decision, rejecting his appeal.

The judge proceeded to decline jurisdiction, holding that the suit, having been found to be statute-barred, robbed the court of the requisite jurisdiction to hear and determine it and however, he proceeded to also determine the suit on the merits and equally dismissed it on the grounds that the plaintiff failed to prove his case.

He faulted the plaintiff’s argument that Duke was validly returned as PRP’s presidential candidate in the May 25 primary election, having allegedly not been a registered member of the party when the PRP submitted its membership register to INEC on May 4.

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Justice Umar held that the issue of membership of a political party is an internal affair of the political party, which is non-justiciable and over which the court lacked jurisdiction.

The judge also faulted the plaintiff’s claim that Duke did not comply with the party’s guidelines, was ineligible to participate in the primary election and ought not to have been cleared to contest, having allegedly failed to physically appear for screening at the party’s national secretariat.

He noted that while Kingsley referred to the PRP’s guidelines, which he claimed Duke violated, he failed to produce the said guidelines before the court as required.

Justice Umar rejected Kingsley’s claim of over-voting during the primary election in states like Bauchi, Kwara and Gombe, holding that he failed to prove over-voting as required by law.

Kingsley had, in his originating summons, urged the court to determine whether Duke was validly returned as the party’s presidential candidate in the May 25 primary election, having allegedly not been a registered member of the PRP when the party submitted its membership register to INEC on May 4.

He prayed for a declaration that Duke was ineligible to participate in the primary election and ought not to have been cleared to contest, having allegedly failed to physically appear for screening at the party’s national secretariat.

The plaintiff also prayed the court to set aside the results from Bauchi, Gombe and Kwara states over alleged over-voting and declare him the PRP presidential candidate for the 2027 elections.

He further sought an order directing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to recognise Duke as the party’s presidential candidate and to, instead recognise him as the PRP’s flagbearer.