Minister sues APC for disqualifying him as one of the Guber aspirants in Oyo

Minister of Communication, Adebayo Shittu, has sued the All Progressive Congress for disqualifying him as one of the Oyo state governorship aspirant over NYSC discharge certificate.

APC had denied him clearance to participate in the party primary election in Oyo state over non-possession of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC

The minister said it was wrong for the party to drop his name for the primary election on account of not presenting his certificate.

According to Vanguard, the embattled minister stressed that he was certified and qualified prior to his appointment in the presidential cabinet.

Shittu also faulted the scheme for not mobilising him for the one-year programme.

“I know as a fact that I was also not served any Notice or notified in any manner to proceed to participate in the National Youth Service Corps Scheme".

In an affidavit which he swore to, Shittu stressed that the electoral act did not make participation in the National Youth Service Corps Scheme a condition precedent for contesting any elective office whatsoever.

In a legal warrant presented by his Counsel, Mr. A.U. Mustapha( SAN), the minister pointed some key issues the court need to determine.

The writ presented reads below;

”whether by the provision of Section 2(1) of the National Youth Service Corps Decree No. 24 of 1973 and/or any other provision of the Decree being the law in force as at 1978 when the Plaintiff graduated at the University of Ile-Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife) he was under any legal obligation to have warranted the plaintiff’s participation in the National Youth Service Corps in the absence of a call-up instrument duly served on the Plaintiff by the National Youth Service Corps. Minister of Communications, Dr Adebayo Shittu s *”whether, by the combined reading of Sections 176-183 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria [as Amended] and Article 20(iii) & (iv) of the Constitution of the All Progressive Congress; it is a condition that the gubernatorial aspirant of the 1st Defendant (APC) and/or any political party for that matter in Nigeria must present the National Youth Service Corps Discharge/Exemption Certificate;

”Whether it is ultra vires the powers of the 1st defendant to have disqualified the plaintiff from participating in its primary election for nomination of the governorship candidate of the 1st defendant in Oyo State for the 2019 General Election on the ground that the plaintiff does not possess National Youth Service Corps Discharge/Exemption Certificate;

”Whether it does not amount to denial of fair hearing as enshrined in Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution of as amended for the 1st defendant to have purportedly disqualified the Plaintiff from contesting for governorship election in Oyo State under the platform of the 1st defendant without availing the Plaintiff an opportunity to be heard on the allegations that the plaintiff avoided the National Youth Service Scheme; and

”whether by the combined reading of the provisions of Sections 147(5), 65(1)(b) & (2), 66 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Section 12 of the National Youth Service Corps Act, Cap N84 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, the plaintiff was qualified to have been appointed as a Minister capable of holding the office, and/or any other governmental office at any level notwithstanding the fact that he did not participate in the National Youth Service Corps Scheme.”