Tribunal Reserves Judgment In Naanlong Daniel, Petition Against Rt.Hon. Speaker Sule Moses

Yakubu Busari

The Plateau State Election Tribunal has reserved judgment in the petitions against the election of Speaker, Rt.Hon. Sule Moses is to be communicated to parties whenever judgment is ready.

The tribunal led by Justice Mohammed Tukur, said it would communicate a date for judgment to the parties after counsels adopted their final written addresses.

Hon . Daniel Naanlong Gapyil is challenging the return of the Peoples Democratic Party Mikang state constituency Assembly election candidate, Hon. Sule Moses as well as his party PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the 25th February 2023 general elections held in Mikang Local Government Council of Plateau State.

The petitioners the former majority leader of PLHA were present in court to witness the proceedings but the second and third respondents were not in court on Saturday.

INEC is the first respondent in the petition, while Sule Moses and PDP are listed as the second and third respondents respectively.

Adopting address, Sule Moses counsel, Sunday Oyawole asked the court to dismiss the petitions of the APC and that candidate Mr Daniel Naanlong for lacking in merit and a mere academic exercise.

He noted that there was no reference to the second respondent but instead, the address dwelt on the third respondent’s PDP structure and noncompliance to court judgments.

“They have abandoned their petition and also abandoned any issues against the second respondent.”

He said the matter of non-qualification of the PDP to sponsor and nominate as claimed by the APC was to no issue as the allegation of preelection matter which should have been before a federal high court

Similarly, counsel to the All Progressives Congress, S.S.Obende  contended that the argument of the respondent’s written address was dated 26-08-2023 and filed 27-08-2023 where he placed reliance on it urging the court to find merit in his petition and grant this petitioner.

Naanlong counsel Obende , asked the tribunal to hold the position of his clients that the speaker did not qualify to contest and he and the party PDP  should be removed from office and the petitioner declared as the elected member for Mikang state constituency.

Adopting his final written address, counsel to the 2nd & and 3rd respondent, Oyawole , argued that ground 1 of the petition borders on structure and the tribunal is not here to determine who sponsored and nominated who but the validity of the petitioners.

Counsel for INEC, K.M.Haman  in their adoption of his final written address asked the Tribunal to dismiss Naanlong petition for lack of evidence.

He said, “One of the issues raised by the petitioner is whether the election was conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act. On this issue, we say that they have provided no scintilla of proof to show it wasn’t.

“A petition erected on such an allegation was sought to be proven by 3 witnesses in a state that has 400 polling units. The petition is materially challenged”.