APC alleges House of Rep. member from Yobe forges certificates

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked the Yobe Legislative Elections Petitions Tribunal to nullify the election of Hon. Sabo Garba (PDP- Nangere/Potiskum) over allegations of certificate forgery and perjury.

The Party and Mr Ali Yakubu, its candidate in the April 28 House of Representatives elections in Nangere/Potiskum Federal Constituency of Yobe, made the request in a petition filed before the tribunal sitting in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

In the copy of the petition obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday, the petitioners alleged that the lawmaker did not attend the schools he claimed to have attended in the INEC forms he filled.

“The first respondent as at the date of the election conducted on March 28, 2015, was not qualified to contest the election into the House of Representatives representing Nanegere/Potiskum Federal Constituency.

“His affidavit in support of Personal Particulars INEC forms CF 001 states that he attended Teachers College Bama, Borno State, from 1979 to 1984, but there is no record from the school and National Teachers Institute, of having attended such institution.
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`The first respondent claimed in the affidavit that he attended Central Primary School Potiskum, from 1974 to 1979, but there is no record from the school of having attended such institution,” the petition noted.

The petitioners said they would rely on the correspondences from Teachers College Bama, National Teachers Institute Kaduna and Central Primary School, Potiskum, to back the allegation.

Specifically, they said they had contacted the three institutions and obtained information and documents to the effect that the lawmaker did not attend them.

The petitioners also alleged that in the INEC Personal Particulars form, the first respondent did not specify any qualification he possessed, neither did he attach any certificate from the schools he claimed to have attended.

They alleged that the lawmaker, as at the date of his election, was not qualified to contest the election into the House of Representatives and therefore prayed the court to nullify his election.

The petitioner sought the tribunal’s “declaration that the first respondent was not duly declared and returned as the winner of the House of Representatives election for the Nanegere/Potiskum Federal Constituency of Yobe”.

Their request is on the ground that “he had no academic qualification to contest the said election’’.

Meanwhile, the lawmaker or respondent, Garba, in a counter-motion filed before the same tribunal, has denied the allegations of certificate forgery and perjury.

In his response to paragraphs 62 to 68 of the petition, the first respondent said that he was qualified to contest the election.
Garba said that he attended Central Primary school Potiskum from 1974 to 1979, and that certificate was issued to him by the Ministry of Education of the old North – Eastern State.

The lawmaker also insisted that he attended Teachers College, Bama, Borno from 1979 to 1984 and that Higher Elementary (Grade 2) Teachers Certificate was issued to him.

NAN reports that the tribunal has subpoenaed four witnesses to tender documents and give testimonies on the veracity of the allegations.