The hammer fell heavily on the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Rivers State, Tonye Cole, yesterday following his disqualification by a Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt for having dual citizenship.

The court also ruled that the APC violated the Electoral Act by nominating Cole, a British citizen, as its candidate.

The court ruling followed a petition by the Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) requesting an order from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to recognise Cole as the APC governorship candidate due to alleged dual citizenship.

The PDP also requested that the delegate election that brought Cole into candidature not follow due process because it was not monitored by the electoral umpire.

Ruling, Justice Emmanuel Obile agreed with the nation’s leading opposition party (PDP) that Cole was ineligible to run for governor.

He thus directed INEC to remove the candidate’s name from the list of eligible candidates for the 2023 governorship election.

The court’s decision, however, contradicts its earlier ruling on a preliminary objection in an APC suit against the PDP and its governorship candidate, Siminialaye Fubara.

Justice Obile had then ruled that no political party has the right to interfere in the internal affairs of other political parties and that the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.

FG reintroduces history in basic education curriculum

*APC, PDP disagree on judgement

Speaking later to newsmen on the ruling, PDP counsel, Dike Udenna, expressed satisfaction with the decision, claiming that it meant the APC would have no governorship candidate in the 2023 general election.

But counsel to the APC, Collins Dike, stated that the APC would appeal the decision to the Court of Appeal.

He said because his client had been born in Nigeria, the country’s constitution allowed him to run for the governorship.

According to the lawyer, Cole “voluntarily acquired the citizenship of the United Kingdom,” which does not preclude him from voting in the election.

However, reacting to the court’s verdict yesterday, the counsel to PDP, Dike Udenna, expressed happiness over the judgment.

He said it was a reflection that showed that the APC had no governorship candidate for the 2023 general election.

The grounds of the judgment related to several planks which include principal reference to Section 182 (1) of the amended 1999 Constitution which provides that “No person shall be qualified for election to the office of governor of a state if -(a) subject to the provisions of section 28 of this Constitution, he has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a country other than Nigeria or, except in such cases as may be prescribed by the National Assembly, he has made a declaration of allegiance to such other country.