A Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo on Monday adjourned hearing in a forgery case filed against the governorship candidate of the Taraba state All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Emmanuel Bwacha.
The suit filed by Chief David Sabo Kente alleged that the embattled governorship candidate Bwacha forged some of the documents he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that qualified him to contest the primary election of the party.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Barrister John Yuwa, told journalists the instant suit bothers on the qualification of the defendant to have even participated in the primaries of the party in the first place.
Yuwa said the hearing was stalled because the defendants are questioning the jurisdiction of the court and after listening to the arguments, the trial judge decided to adjourn the matter for tomorrow Tuesday, 24/1/2023.
Barrister D. G. Tukura, Counsel to the 3rd defendant, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, said that the case was wrongly filed in the first place, after the errors were corrected at the last adjourned date, only for the team to realize that the matter, even as is currently constituted, is incompetent. Consequently, the defendant has raised his application challenging the jurisdiction of the court.
Also, counsel to the APC, Barrister Boniface Iorkumbur, noted that the plaintiff did not even participate in the said primaries and so has no local bases to have even filed the suit against the governorship candidate.
Iorkumbur said, “the plaintiff also failed to push front the evidence they have against the defendants to enable them prepare their defence, noting that the court is not a chasing ground where counsels will come for a game of hide and seek.”
Justice Bala KS Usman subsequently adjourned the matter for Tuesday to decide if the preliminary objections should be heard first.
Our correspondent reports that Kente is currently challenging the emergence of Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Taraba for the March 11 governorship election.
Ruling on the matter has been adjourned to February 3rd at the Supreme Court Abuja.
