PDP heads to court, seeks Buni’s removal as Yobe governor

Emmanuel AmudaAugust 12, 2021

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The Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) has commenced legal action for the removal of Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, from office over an alleged breach of constitutional provisions barring a sitting executive from holding two offices at the same time.

The PDP in the suit dated and filed August 12, is specifically alleging that Buni violated section 183 of the constitution when as a governor he accepted to serve as Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The plaintiffs which include Umar Damagum and Baba Aji in the suit filed by Emeka Etiaba, SAN, insisted that Buni ceases to be a governor from the moment he accepted to act as APC Caretaker Committee Chairman.

The plaintiffs, therefore, asked the court for an order directing the Yobe State Chief Judge or any other senior person next to the Chief Judge to immediately swear in Damagum and Aji as Governor and Deputy Governor of Yobe State being candidates of the party which came second in the 2019 governorship election in Yobe State.

Newsflash Nigeria had reported that the Supreme Court judgment on the Ondo State governorship election involving Governor Rotimi Akeredolu and Eyitayo Jegede had attracted controversy.

Judges at the Apex Court had reportedly unanimously agreed that it was illegal for Mai Mala Buni to be the governor of Yobe State and also hold an elective position.

They agreed on the constitutional point that a sitting governor could not hold the dual elective position of governor and party national chairman.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s aide and the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, had called Governor Mai Mala Buni to resign immediately to save the party from disgrace.

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The move, Newsflash Nigeria gathered is to forestall any legal booby trap in the future, particularly the 2023 elections over the conduct of the party’s affairs particularly its congresses and convention.

The APC had been thrown into the twist and seeds of division sown among the members following the ruling of the Supreme Court.

Keyamo, SAN, in a leaked memo, had said while the ruling party won the legal battle in the Ondo governorship, the Supreme Court has just weaponised all those that would be aggrieved by the APC Congresses to proceed to court to challenge the competence of the Buni-led committee to organise the congresses and national convention.

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Also, two presidential aides, Senators Babafemi Ojudu and Ita Enang said a cursory look at the minority judgment appeared to have swept the carpet of legality off the caretaker committee rendering it illegal, null, void and of no legal capacity to undertake any action on behalf of and in the name of the party.

In the same vein, a former National Legal Adviser of the APC, Mr Babatunde Ogala (SAN), believed that the party’s congresses remained a nullity in the eyes of the law and should be cancelled forthwith, recommending instead, the reinstatement of the dissolved NWC without the former National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, because his suspension followed due process.