JUST IN: Peter Obi In Fresh Crisis, May Be Disqualified As Labour Party Presidential Candidate

TRIXX NG reports that the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi has landed in fresh crisis which may lead to his disqualification.

This was discussed in a response to a petition filed by the presidential candidate and his party against the candidate of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Peter Obi had requested the election tribunal to disqualify Tinubu and his running mate, Kashim Shettima because they failed to meet the constitutional requirement for the contest.

However, in a response, the APC lawyers asked the court to dismiss the suit because it lacks merit.

APC claimed that the Labour Party lacked the necessary locus standi to initiate the suit against the outcome of the presidential election on the grounds that it did “not present a valid candidate for that election”.

The APC in the reply filed by Mr Thomas Ojo from the chambers of Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, claimed that Obi was still a member of the PDP as at the time he was sponsored by the Labour Party.

“The 1st Petitioner herein resigned his membership of the PDP on May 26, 2022 and joined the Labour Party the following day being May 27, 2022.

“The 2nd Petitioner herein conducted its Presidential Primary on May 30, 2022 which produced the 1st Petitioner as the candidate it intended to sponsor in the General Election

“By section 77(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022, the 2nd Petitioner is mandated to have submitted its comprehensive register of members to the Ist Respondent 30 days before its presidential primary That is to say the said register of members must have been submitted to the Ist Respondent on or before 30th April, 2022.

“The 1st Petitioner as at April 30, 2022 was still a member of the PDP and his name was not and could not have been in the register of members submitted by the 2nd Petitioner to 1st Respondent”.

Going by this, Peter Obi may not escape being disqualified as candidate in the presidential election since he didn’t meet the constitutional requirement.