Senator Mafara declares Yari’s ‘no vote in Zamfara’ speech treasonable

No fewer than Eight governorship aspirants of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara State, have faulted the move by the state governor, Abdulaziz Yari, to enforce the judgement of a state High Court on Zamfara APC candidates crisis.

The aspirants under the aegis of G-8 also called on the National Judicial Council, (NJC) to intervene in the judicial logjam in the state.

Addressing a press conference in Kaduna on Sunday, the aspirants led by Senator Kabir Marafa, and flagged by the Zamfara State Deputy Governor, Malam Ibrahim Wakala, Aminu, Sani Jaji, Abu Magaji, Dauda Lawal and Mohammed, Sagir Hamidu, among others called for urgent intervention of the National Judicial Council (NJC) in the matter.

Marafa who spoke for the group said the “novice application filed last Friday by Governor Yari, seeking the interim enforcement of the judgement of a Zamfara State High Court on the tussle, was strange to the law.”

He also stated that the call by Governor Yari that without APC there would be no elections in Zamfara State was not even a hate speech but a treasonable statement, adding that “the impression he (Yari) is giving is that he can get whatever he wants and he can compromise everybody in the state.”

It would be recalled that nine aspirants purchased the APC governorship forms for the 2019 elections. Eight out of the aspirants had formed the G-8, following the crisis that trailed the APC’s primaries in the state.

Reading from a prepared text, Marafa said a Court of Appeal sitting in Sokoto had adjourned the appeal on APC candidates tussle to February 19, 2019, for hearing and abridged the time for the parties to file briefs.

“Two judgements were delivered on Friday, January 25 on the matter. A Federal High Court presided over by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu held that INEC acted within its powers by refusing to accept list of candidates from a faction of APC in Zamfara State.

“The second judgement was delivered by Justice Muhammad Bello Shinkafi of the High Court in Gusau, Zamfara State. Shinkafi affirmed that primaries were conducted and requested INEC to accept the candidates produced from the primaries. After studying the two judgments, INEC decided to maintain its earlier position on the matter.”

According to him, “arising from the Zamfara State High Court mentioned earlier, two sets of defendants in the case before the Zamfara State High Court i.e Senator Kabiru, Garba Marafa and Hon. Aminu, Sani Jaji separately filed Notices of Appeal against the judgment of Zamfara State High Court.

“The records of appeal in the appeal by Hon Aminu, Sani Jaji was transmitted to the Court of Appeal Sokoto Division on February 7, 2019, between 4 – 5pm. It was gathered that immediately the record was transmitted by the appellant in the appeal, text messages were sent by the Court of Appeal registry to all counsel in the appeal to come to court on Friday, February 8, 2019.

“While at the court on February 8, 2019, the appellant’s counsel sought to know why counsel were invited to come to court since records were only transmitted a day before. Counsel were informed that it was a pre-election matter which must be disposed of expeditiously since elections were around the corner. The counsel for the appellant informed the court that there was no urgency in the matter as the judgement appealed against did not exclude anybody from participating in the election.

“This motion before the Court of Appeal is said to be seeking the interim enforcement of the judgment of Zamfara State High Court. What is most baffling with the application is that no lawyer has ever seen a Court of Appeal enforcing the judgment of any court below it.

“It remains to be seen what course justice will take in the matter especially in view of the decision reached by the Supreme Court on Friday February 8, 2019, affirming that INEC was right to take a position not to allow APC field any candidates for violation of the conduct of party primaries in the State,” he said