The eligibility hearing for Mr. Joshua Maciver, the Bayelsa State All Progressives Congress, APC, deputy governorship candidate, was set to begin on September 13 by a Federal High Court in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, presided over by Justice Olaide Quadiri.
Ikisima Johnson, an APC candidate for governor who competed in the party’s governorship primaries but lost to Chief Timipre Sylva in the end, is questioning Maciver’s eligibility and requesting that he be disqualified from serving as the party’s running mate on the grounds that he is an ex-convict.
The APC is named as the first defendant in the lawsuit with file number FHC/YNG/CS114/2023/, followed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the APC’s governorship candidate, Chief Timipre Sylva, and his running mate, Joshua Maciver.
Leizou Elijah, the attorney for Johnson, filed a request for conversion of the case from an originating summons to pleadings during the preliminary hearing on Monday. He also requested a date for the court to hear the move.
Justice Olaide Quadiri advised all parties to exchange pleadings and processes in order to make sure that everyone files their processes before the next hearing date when she delayed the case until September 13 for the hearing and decision on the plaintiff’s application for conversion of the originating summons to pleadings.
“This is a case that was filed by one Isikima Johnson who was incidentally a governorship aspirant of the APC in Bayelsa State, and according to the originating processes that was served on us, they are trying to challenge the eligibility Hon. Joshua Maciver that was nominated as a running mate to Chief Timipre Sylva, which had been for the APC in Bayelsa State.” Benjamin Ogbara, counsel to Chief Sylva and Maciver.
“They are challenging the eligibility of the running mate, of course you know as far as I am concerned the process is in court but I know the court cannot entertain this matter basically because the matter is statute-barred.
“The judge said all parties should exchange pleadings and the matter was adjourned to 13th of September 2023 by which time all pleadings and processes have been filed and on that day the court will take all applications and he will subsequently adjourn for judgement.”
Source: Vanguard
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