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| Former Governor Timipre Sylva |
A momentous legal pronouncement by Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court in Abuja has sent shockwaves through the political arena of Bayelsa.
This verdict, delivered on Monday, has unequivocally disqualified Chief Timipre Sylva, the chosen candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), from participating in the upcoming Bayelsa gubernatorial election.
Justice Okorowo's decision was meticulously rooted in a comprehensive interpretation of the 1999 constitution, as amended, and its stipulations regarding term limits for governors.
He underscored that Chief Sylva, a former governor of Bayelsa who has been inaugurated twice before, would contravene the constitution if granted the opportunity to vie for the position once more.
The judge also emphasized that permitting Sylva to enter the November election would potentially result in his holding the governor's office for more than eight years, a direct affront to the constitutional provision that strictly prohibits individuals from seeking the governorship more than twice.
Justice Okorowo's verdict prominently relied on the precedent established by the Supreme Court in the case of Marwa vs. Nyako.
In that groundbreaking legal battle, the Supreme Court definitively decreed that no individual should be deemed eligible to contest the gubernatorial position more than twice—an influential ruling intended to stave off any undue expansion of the constitution's purview.
This Federal High Court judgment, which nullifies Chief Timipre Sylva's candidacy, imparts a fresh dynamic into Bayelsa's political landscape as the state approaches the imminent gubernatorial election.
It reinforces the paramount significance of adhering to constitutional term limits within Nigeria's democratic framework and accentuates the pivotal role of the judiciary in upholding these bounds.
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