Tribunal: Tension In Tinubu’s Camp As Evidence Shows Shettima Not Qualified To Run On Presidential Ticket 

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By Our Correspondent With Additional Report from Abujapress 

THERE is palpable tension in the camp of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential and vice presidential candidates, Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Senator Kashim Ibrahim Shettima respectively, as evidence shows that Shettima was not qualified to have contested in the election.

This was deduced from two documents submitted by Senator Shettima to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Certified True Copies (CTC) which were obtained by Mr Peter Gregory Obi and his party, the Labour Party (LP).

The first document dated 14 July 2022, showed one Ibrahim Kabir Masari, who was originally presented as the running mate to Tinubu, withdrawing his candidacy for Shettima.

The document was, however, received and stamped by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on 15 July 2022.

The second document dated 15 July 2022, showed Shettima, who was originally the candidate of Borno Central Senatorial District, withdrawing his candidacy for one Lawan Kaka Shehu.

The document was also received and stamped by INEC on 15 July 2022.

It could be recalled that Labour Party and Mr Peter Obi had petitioned the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal asking it to disqualify Shettima as he was, at the time of the election, not qualified to contest the election.

The Petitioners averred that on the 14th of July 2022, Shettima, contrary to the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, whilst still being a senatorial candidate for Borno Central Constituency, knowingly allowed himself to be nominated as the vice presidential candidate to Tinubu on the platform of APC and became the new candidate for the office of the vice president on that date (14 July 2022).

The Petitioners relied on Form EC11A signed by the Shettima and INEC officials on that same 14th of July 2022.

Responding to the petition, Tinubu told the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal that his running mate is eminently qualified to contest the 2023 presidential election.

In his response to the Peter Obi and Labour Party petition before the Tribunal, Tinubu claimed that as of 14 July 2022, when he was nominated as the APC vice­ presidential candidate, Shettima was no longer APC’s senatorial candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial District. 

According to him, the Notice of Withdrawal signed by Shettima on 6 July 2022, was conveyed by party officials on 15 July 2022, to INEC to enable APC to present him to INEC as its vice­ presidential candidate.

He further claimed that the date on the Notice of Withdrawal was not the date Shettima withdrew from contesting as a senatorial candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial District.

APC said that Shettima was nominated for the vice presidential post on the 14th of July though INEC did not receive his withdrawal notice immediately.

Therefore, they will stick to his withdrawal date as the day he wrote the letter and not the day it was received and stamped by INEC which was 15 July  2022.

INEC, on the other hand, said that Shettima wrote the Notice of Withdrawal on 6 July but that it did not receive the notice until 13 July, hence, concluded that Shettima withdrew on the 6th.

Meanwhile reacting to the various positions of APC and INEC, a political analyst, who spoke on condition of anonymity opined that “What INEC is saying is that Shettima wrote a letter of withdrawal on 6 July, but the letter didn’t get to INEC until 13 of July, therefore, Shettima withdrew on the 6th! Does that sound logical?

“APC is saying that Shettima was nominated for a vice presidential seat on the 14th of July although INEC hadn’t received his withdrawal notice yet, therefore, they will stick to his withdrawal date as the day he wrote the letter and not the day INEC received it!

“APC said the letter was dated July 6th but delivered to INEC on 15 July. INEC said the letter was dated 6 July but was received on the 13th.

Anyone can write a notice of withdrawal to INEC but leave it at home for as long as they want, but until the letter is in its hands and stamped as received, INEC can’t say they received it earlier or attempt to backdate that withdrawal”.  

Eighteen-Eleven Media reports that 17 June  2022 was the deadline for the submission of nominations by all political parties.  

It was also gathered by this news media that on 10 July 2022, Mr. Shettima, the Borno Central Senatorial District candidate was submitted by Asiwaju Tinubu at the expiration of three weeks withdrawal notice to INEC by Mr Masari.

Masari was submitted as the vice presidential candidate before the close of nomination. Shetima, already holding the senate nomination, accepted the vice presidential nomination after the deadline for nomination. Eighteen-Eleven Media further gathered that extant sections of the Electoral Act stipulate that only a fresh primary within 14 days could have produced a new ticket in replacement of the invalidated ticket.

Meanwhile, the contention of counsel on Mr Obi’s camp is that withdrawal of Ibrahim Masari as vice presidential candidate to Mr Tinubu invalidates the joint ticket according to Section 142 (1) of the 1999 Constitution and Section 133 of the Electoral Act. 

They also contend that the substitution of Senator Shettima did not follow due process. According to them, APC ought to have conducted a fresh primary to produce their candidate within 14 days of Masari’s withdrawal in accordance with Section 133 of the Electoral Act. 

Shetima’s withdrawal from the senatorial contest when nomination had closed, they insist, meant that APC had no candidate for the Borno Central Senatorial poll. 

They also posit that the withdrawal of Mallam Masari and Senator Shetima not being properly nominated as vice presidential candidate renders Tinubus’s ticket invalid.

All votes cast in favour of Tinubu are, therefore,  wasted votes”.  

 

Eighteen-Eleven Media 

 

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