Absence of judge stalls countuation of APC Nasarawa West Senatorial primaries hearing

The absence of Justice Nehizina Idumudia-Afolabi of the Federal High Court sitting in Lafia, Nasarawa State, has stalled the continuation of hearing of a case filed by a senatorial aspirant of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Barr. Labaran Magaji, over the Nasarawa West senatorial district primaries.

Magaji is challenging the emergence of Arc. Shehu Tukur as the APC Senatorial candidate from the zone.

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Daily Trust reports that Magaji had dragged the party and Tukur to court over alleged abormalities during the election.

Addressing journalists at the Court on Wednesday, the lead counsel to the plaintiff , Barr. Ahmed Raji (SAN), said the judge could not make it to the court owing to unforseen circumstances beyond her control.

Raji said, “We are in the Federal High Court sitting in Lafia in our numbers to register our solidarity for Magaji because he is our friend, a colleague, classmate and law schoolmate and today the entire law school set of 2005 which he also belongs to have decided to join forces with him.

“We are ready to swim with him. We are ready to win the case for him, whatever our duty as his classmates in law school, we will do and ensure that we get justice at the end of the case. We are not protesting rather we are here to protect the right of our own because he has a right to be protected and we must protect that right.”

According to him, the adjournment was not man made, but the will of God, saying that the judge is human and such things are bound to happen.

The counsel to the plaintiff, however, affirmed that he was in court along side some of his colleagues to seek justice, reiterating that justice must never be sacrificed or compromised for anything

He, however, expressed optimism that at the end of the whole deliberation, the court would do justice to the matter.

On his part, Labaran Magaji has vowed not to relent until he secures justice in the ongoing suit against the APC candidate for the Nasarawa West senatorial constituency.

Magaji admonished his supporters to remain calm and work for the success of the party in the forthcoming 2023 general elections.

However, counsel to the first defender (Shehu Tukur, APC Senatorial candidate), Dr. Mubarak Adekilekun stated that the adjournment was not the fault of anybody.

He said they would be in court on the next adjourned day to prove their case.

Our correspondent also reports that both counsel to the plaintiff and defendant revealed that the case was adjourned to September 7, 2022, for the continuation of the hearing.