Mr Timipre Sylva, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the upcoming November 11 Bayelsa governorship election, filed an appeal on Tuesday against a lower court’s decision rejecting his candidature.
Sylva asked the court to vacate the judgement in a notice of appeal filed by his lawyer, Mr Ahmed Raji, SAN.
In addition, the immediate-past Minister of Petroleum filed a stay of execution against the judgement.
Recall that Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court (FHC), Abuja, disqualified the APC candidate from running in the election in a decision issued Monday night.
Sylva, who had been sworn in twice and reigned for five years as governor of the state, would violate the 1999 Constitution (as amended) if allowed to run again, according to Justice Okorowo.
Mr Deme Kolomo, an APC member in Bayelsa, petitioned the court to ask the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remove Sylva’s name from the list of candidates fighting the Nov. 11 governorship election.
Sylva, according to Kolomo, was ineligible to run for governor of Bayelsa because he held the position from May 29, 2007 to April 15, 2008, and again from May 27, 2008 until January 27, 2012.
Raji stated shortly after the appeal was filed that the FHC decision went against well-established legal principles and precedents.
“The chances of success at the Appeal Court are very high,” he said.
He stated that the appeal posed three fundamental issues: jurisdiction, locus standi, and improper interpretation of affidavit evidence.
In a notice motion filed on Oct. 10, Sylva asked for the court to grant “an order staying execution and/or further execution of the entire judgement and the orders contained in the judgement of the court, delivered on the 9th October, 2023, pending the hearing and final determination of the appeal lodged against the judgement and orders of this court before the Court of Appeal, Abuja.”
He further asked the court for an injunction to prevent the respondents from carrying out and/or carrying out the declaratory and executory orders included in the judgement.
The ex-minister also raised three grounds of appeal in his October 10 appeal.
According to him, in his judgement, Justice Okorowo wrongly acquired jurisdiction by delving into the internal affairs of his party, APC, which is a non-justiciable cause of action, resulting in a grievous miscarriage of justice.
He stated that the trial court owed it to the parties to understand their case and apply the law accurately.
In ground two, the former governor claimed that Justice Okorowo erred in law when he incorrectly conferred, allowed, and adjudicated on the matter when the respondent lacked locus standi to initiate or institute the action, having admitted not participating in the APC primary election that produced him as the party’s governorship candidate, resulting in a grave miscarriage of justice against him.
He claimed that the court failed to properly assess, determine, and pronounce on his notice of preliminary objection contesting the suit’s competency, infringing on his right to a fair hearing granted under the 1999 Constitution.
There is no set date for the appeal hearing.
