The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday, June 29, struck out a suit seeking the disqualification of Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki from contesting the September 2020 governorship election for allegedly forging his university certificate.
The suit filed on May 29, 2020, by Edobor Williams, Ugesia Godwin and Amedu Anakhu alleged that the University of Ibadan certificate which he attached to his Form CF.001 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for his first term election in 2016 was forged.
At a resumed sitting on Monday, June 29, the judge Justice Chikere struck out the suit because neither the plaintiffs’ lawyers nor the defendants’ were present in court.
According to the plaintiffs, Obaseki was “not qualified to run or seek the office of governor of Edo State on the platform of the first defendant (APC) in the governorship election scheduled to be held in the state on September 19, 2020”.
They plaintiffs alleged in the suit marked, FHC/ ABJ/CS/553/2020 that the governor’s educational information contained in Part C of the Form CF 001 which he submitted to INEC on July 12, 2016, and the degree certificate of Bachelor of Arts in Classical Studies, said to have been obtained from the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, was forged.
Obaseki who was an aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was disqualified from contesting by the screening panel becasuse they doubted the National Youth Service Certificate (NYSC) and the testimonial of the Institute of Continuing Education Benin city submitted by Obaseki.
Reacting to his disqualification, the suspended National Chairman of the APC, comrade Adams Oshiomhole had said the decision to screen the aspirants was in tandem with the resolve of the party to deepen the tenets of democracy.
The Edo state governor was also not represented by any lawyer in the court session.
Content created and supplied by: Solkay (via Opera News )
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