In an unexpected twist to the forthcoming Bayelsa governorship election, Demesuoyefa Kolomo, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has petitioned the Federal High Court in Abuja.
He asks for the removal of former Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva from the roster of candidates for the November 11 contest.
Kolomo, through his attorney, Prof. Abiodun Amuda-Kannike, delivered his plea to Justice Donatus Okorowo.
His claim hinged on Sylva’s two prior terms as Bayelsa governor, raising questions about the candidate’s eligibility.
The suit focused on two critical points. The first: is Sylva, having served two terms as Bayelsa’s governor in 2007 and 2008, qualified to run in the upcoming election as per Section 82 (1)(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended)?
The second question challenged if Sylva, who held the governor’s office from 2007 to 2012, can vie for another four-year term according to Section 180(2)(a) of the same Constitution.
Kolomo further requested that INEC remove Sylva’s name from the APC candidate list, or any other political party, in the November 11 election or any subsequent one, based on Section 182(1)(b) of the Constitution. He claimed this section deems Sylva ineligible to run for the governorship again.
In an accompanying affidavit, Kolomo revisited Sylva’s political history. He noted Sylva’s first election to the governorship in 2007, which was later nullified by the Court of Appeal in 2008.
Sylva won a second election in 2008, serving until 2012. Kolomo emphasized that Sylva’s name had recently appeared among the list of gubernatorial candidates published by INEC.
During a court mention, Amuda-Kannike reported that the APC and INEC had been served notice, but Sylva had not yet been reached.
He thus requested a motion for substituted service. With the motion granted, Justice Okorowo postponed the hearing to June 26.
Timipre Sylva, the man in the eye of this legal storm, once served as the Bayelsa governor on the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) platform.
He vied for the gubernatorial candidacy against ex-President Goodluck Jonathan in 2006. After winning the PDP ticket and the subsequent 2007 election, Sylva succeeded Jonathan, then the Vice President to late President Umaru Yar’Adua.
His 2007 victory faced a challenge from Ebitimi Amgbare of the defunct Action Congress (AC).
Despite the Bayelsa State Election Petitions Tribunal upholding Sylva’s win, the Appeal Court in Rivers nullified it in April 2008. Sylva once more emerged victorious in a subsequent election, serving until 2012 when the Supreme Court ended his tenure prematurely.
