Speaking through his lawyer, U.I Ujah, Esq, on Saturday, the President Bola Tinubu’s ministerial nominee catalogued court cases which he claimed eventually exonerated him from the barring from contesting or holding political offices.
A ministerial nominee from Taraba State, Senator Sani Danladi, has claimed there is no subsisting court order barring him from contesting or holding political offices.
Speaking through his lawyer, U.I Ujah, Esq, on Saturday, the President Bola Tinubu’s ministerial nominee catalogued court cases which he claimed eventually exonerated him from the barring from contesting or holding political offices.
SaharaReporters had on Friday reported that Danladi was barred in 2019 from contesting or holding political offices for 10 years over forgery.
A publication on the Taraba State website also confirmed how Danladi was barred In 2019 from contesting or holding political offices over alleged certificate forgery and age falsification.
Prior to the 2019 general elections, a High Court in Jalingo had disqualified Abubakar Sani Danladi from contesting the election after it was found that he presented a forged document to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The case went on to the Court of Appeal before the election and to the Supreme Court after the election, where the apex court affirmed the judgement of the lower court confirming that the certificate presented by Sani Danladi to the INEC was fake and forged.
It was in the same judgement that the Supreme Court barred Sani Danladi from contesting any election until after 10 years.
The Gazette done by Taraba State reads in part; "A five man Panel of the Supreme Court of Nigeria sitting in Abuja today the 5th day of July, 2019 and composed of The Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria Tanko Mohammed JSC, Mary Peter Odili JSC, Olukayode Ariwoola JSC, Paul Galumje JSC and Uwani Abbaji JSC have dismissed the Appeal filed by Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi the purported APC Governorship candidate in the 2019 Taraba state Governorship election which challenges his disqualification by the Federal High Court, Jalingo.
"The Supreme Court dismissed the Appeal for being incompetent and failing to meet the requirements of the law.
"EFFECT OF THE JUDGEMENT ON ALHAJI SANI ABUBAKAR DANLADI’S POLITICAL CAREER AND FUTURE. Sani Abubakar Danladi destroyed himself and committed political suicide by presenting a questionable WAEC certificate to INEC and lying on oath in his form CF001 before the 2019 election about his age.
"The Taraba state government is also under a heavy moral and legal obligation to do the needful by raising a GOVERNMENT WHITE PAPER recognising the judgement and thereafter Gazette/Publish same in the official Gazette of the state; and this shall imply that Sani Abubakar Danladi shall not be qualified to contest for; nor hold any political office from the date of the Gazette to a period of ten years. Taraba state government do not have a choice in this regard except to Gazette the judgement else the government will be accused of aiding and abetting crime," the statement added.
But reacting through his lawyer, Danladi said that “there is no subsisting judgment of any court in Nigeria disqualifying Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi from either contesting an election or barring him from holding any public office.”
The counsel said, “For the sake of record, it has become pertinent to put the record straight thus: On the 6/03/2019, the Federal High Court, Jalingo Division delivered a Judgment in SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR, wherein the Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi was disqualified from contesting the gubernatorial election of Taraba State in the 2019 General Election.
“Notably, Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi appealed against the above decision in SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR to the Court of Appeal via APPEAL NO: CA/YL/41/2019 BETWEEN ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR V. USMAN UDI & ORS. However, the Court of Appeal on the 3/05/2019 struck out the said appeal for being incompetent.
“Dissatisfied with the outcome of the said appeal, Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi further appealed to the Supreme Court in APPEAL NO: SC/518/2019 BETWEEN ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR V. USMAN UDI & ORS. The Supreme Court, however, struck out the appeal having held that same was incompetent.
“However, at page 20 of the Supreme Court’s Judgment, His Lordship, Peter-Odili, JSC (as he then was) held thus: “Learned Senior Counsel for the appellants had sought to lead the court to the earlier situation relating to the cause of action at the trial court by contending that the trial court itself had no jurisdiction to determine the matter in the first place if Section 285 CFRN is applicable since the cause of action arose on 25th October, 2018 a point not disputed and the Originating Summons filed on 9th January 2017 which made the action filed 76 days after the accrued cause of action, instead of 14 days provided by Section 285 (9) of the Constitution”
“Premised on the above findings of the apex Court, Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi commenced an action via SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/10/2021 BETWEEN ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI VS. USMAN UDI &5 ORS before the same Federal High Court, Jalingo Division to set aside its earlier decision in SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR on the grounds that the Court lacked the Jurisdiction to have entertained the suit in the first place.
“The Honourable Court found merit in Our Client’s case and on the 15th day of October, 2021, set aside its earlier decision in SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR as being a decision given without jurisdiction. (Se Annexure “E”). The Defendants in SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/10/2021 BETWEEN ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI VS. USMAN UDI &5 ORS thereafter filed a Notice and Grounds of Appeal to the Court of Appeal, Yola Division, which was later withdrawn.
“Preparatory to the 2023 General Elections, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) instituted an action at the Federal High Court, Abuja Division in SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/1080/2022 BETWEEN PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY V. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC) & ORS, urging the Honourable Court to disqualify Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi from participating in the 2023 General Election as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), on the ground that he has been disqualified from contesting election, relying on the Judgment Federal High Court, Jalingo Division delivered on 6th of March 2019, in SUIT NO:FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR.
“On the other hand, Our Client contended that the Judgment being relied upon by the PDP had been set aside on 15th day of October, 2021, via SUIT NO: FHC/JAL/CS/1/2019 BETWEEN USMAN UDI & 3 ORS. VS. ABUBAKAR SANI DANLADI & ANOR. Interestingly, the trial Court in the judgment delivered on the 22/11/2022 dismissed SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/1080/2022 BETWEEN PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY V. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC) & ORS.
“The Peoples Democratic Party PDP was dissatisfied with the Judgment of the Trial Court Appealed against the said Judgement to the Court of Appeal in APPEAL NO: CA/ABJ/CV/1344/2022BETWEEN PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY V. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION & 2 ORS, which appeal was equally dismissed by the Court of Appeal on the 23/01/2023.
“Pained with decision of the Court of Appeal, PDP further appealed to the Supreme Court via APPEAL NO: SC/CV/168/2023 BETWEEN PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY V. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION & 2 ORS. However, the appeal was again dismissed.
“As if that is not enough, in the primary election, Senator Sani Abubakar Danladi opponent (Alhaji Ali Sani Kona) filed another case as in SUIT NO: SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/1777/2022 BETWEEN ALI SANI V. SANI ABUBAKAR DANLADI & 2 ORS on the purported disqualification even though he was a party in SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/1080/2022 BETWEEN PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY V. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC) & ORS. The Federal High Court, Abuja had on 13th day of February, 2023 dismissed the case.
“Giving all these facts, it is clear for the blind to see and audible for the deaf to hear that there is no subsisting judgment of any court in Nigeria disqualifying Our Client from either contesting an election or barring him from holding any public office.”