Go to court if you doubt any candidate’s qualification, INEC chairman tells Nigerians

The chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mahmood Yakubu, has advised Nigerian to take legal actions against any candidate whose qualification for 2019 general election is in doubt.

Mahmood stated this few hours after INEC released credentials of presidential aspirants in the 2019 election.

While Donald Duke (SDP) and Atiku Abubakar (PDP) had submitted their educational credentials to INEC, President Muhammadu Buhari – in an affidavit – told the electoral umpire that his academic documents are in custody of the .

Buhari’s declaration sparked outrage amongst Nigerian who wondered why the President had not requested for his credentials from the Military Board.

But, addressing journalists at the INEC headquarters in Abuja on Friday, October 26, 2018, Mahmood noted that Nigerians wishing to file legal actions against any candidate can before it was too late.

“Any person with reasonable ground to believe that any information on form CF001 submitted by a candidate contains incorrect or false claims is at liberty to file an action against such candidate at the federal high court or the high court of a state or FCT,” the INEC chairman said.

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“While the current exercise is limited to candidates for presidential and national assembly elections, the personal particulars of those contesting in governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will be published on November 9, 2018, one week after the close of submission of nominations by political parties,” he added.

The INEC chairman urged Nigerians to verify details of those seeking to represent them at various elective positions.

Over 70 candidates for president

Meanwhile, over seventy candidates will jostle for Buhari's job in 2019.

They include; Social Democratic Party (SDP), Kingsley Moghalu of the Young Progressive Party (YPP), Obiageli Ezekwesili of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Fela Durotoye of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN), and Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress (AAC).

Others are Tope Fasua of the Abundance Nigeria Renewal Party (ANRP), Eunice Atuejide of the National Interest Party (NIP), Olusegun Mimiko of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), Adesina Fagbenro-Byron of the Kowa Party (KP), Chike Ukaegbu of the Advanced Allied Party (AAP), Hamza Al-Mustapha of the People's Party of Nigeria (PPN), Obadiah Mailafiaof the African Democratic Congress (ADC) amongst others.