A female presidential aspirant Patience Key has dragged Kola Abiola before a Federal High Court in Abuja, asking the court to stop him from parading himself as the presidential candidate of Peoples Redemption Party (PRP).
Abiola emerged the party’s candidate at the June 5 primaries.
In the originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1001/2022, Key also prayed for an order setting aside the declaration of Abiola as the winner of the primaries conducted across the country.
Abiola is the son of the late politician and businessman Moshood Abiola, who won the June 1993 presidential election.
The plaintiff sued the party, Abiola and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as first, second and third defendants respectively.
In the application dated and filed on June 28 by her lawyer, the frontline politician alleged that the June 5 presidential primary election was conducted in gross violations of the party’s guidelines, “the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022 and INEC’s guidelines in the nomination or sponsorship of the 2nd defendant (Abiola) as candidate of the 1st defendant (PRP) in the forthcoming 2023 Presidential Election.”
The plaintiff, who prayed the court for an order declaring her as the valid winner of the presidential primary election of the party conducted on June 5, also sought an order directing the party to substitute Abiola’s name with hers and submit same to INEC as PRP’s presidential candidate.
When the matter was called on Tuesday, counsel for the plaintiff, Ibrahim Audu, informed the court that he had been unable to serve Abiola with the amended originating summons.
Counsel to the PRP, Jully Anyata, was in court, but no counsel appeared for Abiola and INEC.
Audu then told the court that he had a motion ex-parte dated Augist 4 and filed August 5, seeking substituted service of the amended originating summons on Abiola and an application seeking leave to amend their originating summons.
But Justice Ahmed Mohammed held that the amended application ought to be properly filed and served on the defendants in the suit.
The judge consequently adjourned the matter till September 7 for further mention.
