A Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has ordered a summon be served on Senator Bassey Albert Akpan and the State Chairman of Young Progressives Party, Pastor Nyenime Andy over planned inheritance of the party’s governorship ticket.
The claimant, Alexander Asuquo, Esq, a governorship aspirant to the said party has dragged the party chairman and Senator Akpan to court for Akpan’s alleged attempt to inherit the governorship ticket from the party chairman whose name was earlier submitted to INEC as the party’s governorship candidate.
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The plaintiff has sought judicial answers to questions bordering on whether the state chairman of the party can validly use his position as the chairman of the party to preserve and reserve the governorship ticket of the party to Sen. Bassey Albert (3rd Defendant) who was already an aspirant under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The matter was adjourned to the 30th of August 2022 for hearing, while hearing notice was ordered to be served on INEC and YPP accordingly.
Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, the aspirant, Mr Asuquo said, “besides challenging the legality of the chairman’s action, I’m also asking the court to determine if after also filling and submitting a nomination form in PDP, Bassey Albert can be validly nominated by YPP in view of the provisions of Section 35 of the Electoral Act 2022.
“I’m not just a member but a gubernatorial aspirant under YPP who was received into the party by Dr. Andy himself.
“After being received into the party in February 2022, I noticed that almost everywhere I went for consultation I was told that the party belongs to OBA.
“I asked some party executives about OBA’s stake in the party but they dismissed it as a rumour.
“I then observed that the state chairman was working for OBA. He blocked me from the party machinery to enable him to preserve the ticket for OBA. I wasn’t sure of the plan until the day the state chairman picked up YPP gubernatorial nomination form pretending that he is interested in running for governor. He was actually acting as a decoy for OBA.
“I was shocked when I realized that the rumour was true and decided to wait for them at the appropriate time. Now I want the court to determine whether what the chairman did in pretending that he wants to contest for governor when in fact he has no intention to run but to keep the ticket for OBA is lawful.
“I’m ready to go up to the Supreme Court over this issue because I believe it will set a bad precedent if not challenged.
“This is a novel provision I want the court to give the judicial interpretation.
“If OBA wanted YPP’s ticket so badly, he ought to have resigned from PDP early enough and not after he failed to succeed in PDP and after I’ve already written to YPP to ventilate my reservation,” Asuquo added.
