Plateau PDP Disobediences Landed Them To Tribunal Sacking & No Structure Bruhaha

Yakubu Busari,

Worried by the Mass sacking of the Peoples Democratic Party ,(PDP) in Plateau State had forced most of those who contested for the 2023 general elections as independent candidates without nomination by the party.

Political pundits including legal practitioners are yet to deal with the reality of what happened during the conflicting election tribunal judgments between Bello Mohammed Tukur of Penal One and Justice Williams Olumide of the second panel sitting at the state high Court premises.

However, the two tribunal judgments carefully considered the issues of subsequent High Court judgments of Hon.Justice S. P Gang on the 26th Day of November 2020 and that of Hon.Justice Ishaya Kunda on September,29th Day of 2021 respectively as the grounds.

In the case of PDP first Congress held and was challenged by Hon. Bitrus Kaze leading to PDP run helter, skelter to challenge the Bitrus Kaze Victory before the Court of  Appeal and Supreme Court instead of vacating the order of the court.

It is no longer news that the Tribunal sitting in Jos has sacked, National Assembly, State, and Federal House of Reps Members of the PDP in Plateau State to discuss and describe them as independent candidates because they’re not duly sponsored by the party to fly the ticket in all the elective seats.

Besides, the derailed of the PDP of constituting Exco exposed them to the danger of the game battle of losing the governorship seat to the opposition APC.

The drama of permutations, cautions, and warnings affected the PDP in the 2020 Local Government election organized by the Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission, PLASIEC, where Hon.Bitrus Kaze officially wrote them to exclude the PDP for their disobedience of court order.

Kaze letter to PLASIEC upheld whether they would allow PDP to participate in the election that is in the public domain before the 2023 general elections.

The inescapable disaster or peril that would eventually befall the PDP in Plateau State.  Well, as it is said, “time reveals”. But it is worrisome that some members of the public and indeed, some lawyers, seem perplexed at the outcome of the decisions under review. For the avoidance of doubt, it is important to note that the general elections where members of the public go out to vote, is actually the concluding part of the electoral process.

Election is a process and defect in any of the processes, renders the outcome of the secondary election, a nullity no matter how well conducted it might otherwise be regarded.

 The process inter alia, includes registration of political parties, congresses to elect EXCO for the Party at all levels, conduct of primary elections, and qualification of both the Political Party and the Candidates to contest an election.

All these processes are regulated by law and must be adhered to, strictly. Thankfully, the Court is the last part of the electoral process and that is where we are presently.  

 The Tribunal at all levels in Plateau State has been inundated with one potent Ground of Petition by both the Labour Party, PRP, and the APC aside from the general irregularities in the conduct of elections.

The Ground of APC challenging the qualification of PDP to field candidates to contest for elections while living in flagrant disobedience to Court orders wasn’t anchored on preelection but that PDP refused vehemently to swallow its pride and constitute legitimate Congress in wards and LGAs across 12, which is Bokkos, Mikang, Langtang North, Wase, Jos East , Jos 

In proving Ground One, the Petitioners relied on and tendered an avalanche of cases decided against the PDP as follows:  Certified True Copy of the Judgment in PLD/J/304/2020- Between Bitrus Kaze and Others Vs. PDP and Others. This is the genesis of the misfortunes of PDP. Here, the Court ordered PDP to conduct Ward, LGA, and State congresses to elect their leaders.