Christian Abah certificate forgery Update – The Abuja Federal High Court has nullified the certificate of return issued to a Benue Rep-elect, Christian Abah, for forging a Diploma of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi. on Wednesday.
The judge held that an earlier judgment of the National/State Assembly Election Petition Tribunal, delivered on Sept. 6, 2011, affirmed that the certificate presented by Abah to INEC was forged.
He also said that a letter by the Registrar of the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi, Mr Suleiman Buba, affirmed that the certificate presented by Abah to INEC was forged.
The judge also declared all the votes that accrued to Abah in the PDP primaries held on Dec. 6, 2014, as wasted and also declared Saleh as winner of the election.
Justice Ademola also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to nullify the certificate of return issued to Abah of the Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency.
He also ordered the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, to immediately commence prosecution of Abah for the crimes of forgery and perjury.
Justice Ademola also decried the conduct of Mr Sunday Ameh (SAN), Counsel to Abah and PDP for what he described as “frivolous applications and tactics to delay the hearing of the case’’.
He ordered that the processes filed in the suit and his judgment be served on the Nigerian Bar Association, the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee and Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee to sanction Ameh.
The judge also ordered the three defendants, the PDP, INEC and Abah, to pay a total of N450,000 costs to the plaintiff.
However, Justice Ademola expressed dissatisfaction over the conduct of INEC and PDP for promoting “the culture of impunity’’ by failing to disqualify Abah from participating in the election, ab initio.
Benue Rep-elect, Christian Abah certificate forgery Issue
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