The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described the delisting of its Bayelsa State governorship candidate, Timipre Sylva, from the contestants’ register as premature.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, was confident on Wednesday, that the courts would rule that Sylva is eligible to be a candidate in the 11 November election.
Sylva’s name was missing from the candidates’ roll released by the Independent National Electoral Commission on Tuesday.
The list was publicized a month after the 9 October Federal High Court, Abuja ruling that disqualified Sylva because he had been sworn in twice as the governor of Bayelsa State.
Justice Donatus Okorowo pronounced that his candidature in 2023 would breach the 1999 Constitution as amended.
Sylva was first elected as Bayelsa State governor in 2007 under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) but his victory was nullified on 15 April 2008 after the Appeal Court in Port Harcourt ruled that he was unqualified to be the party’s candidate.
That was because he did not win the party’s primary, having replaced the winner, Goodluck Jonathan, after the latter was nominated as the PDP’s vice-presidential candidate in the 2007 General Election.
Sylva won the new election that took place on 24 May 2008. His tenure was cut short again, after three years and eight months in office.
