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Appeal court clears Sylva as APC candidate for Bayelsa election
Former Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva has been confirmed as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, for the November 11 governorship election in Bayelsa State.
The development counters the October 9 judgment given by Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court, which nullified the nomination of Sylva as the candidate of APC in the election.
The Court of Appeal, in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel of Justices, vacated the judgement of the Federal High Court in Abuja and that the litigant, Mr Demesuoyefa Kolomo, who initiated the suit that led to Sylva’s disqualification, lacked the locus standi (legal right) to do so.
Consequently, the appellate court, beyond setting aside the verdict of the high court, awarded a cost of N1 million against the Respondent, Kolomo.
The lower court had on October 9, declared that Sylva was not eligible to participate in the gubernatorial contest having already spent five years in office as governor of the state.
The court stressed that since the 1999 Constitution, as amended, okayed a maximum tenure of eight years for a governor, should Sylva contest and win the impending election, he would exceed the constitutional threshold by spending a total of nine years in office.
Justice Donatus Okorowo held that uncontroverted evidence that was adduced before the court established that Sylva had earlier taken the oath of office as Bayelsa state governor, on two occasions.
Relying on a Supreme Court decided case law in Marwa Vs Nyako, the judge held that the constitution could not be stretched to elongate the statutory period that someone could serve as a governor in the country.
He declared that Sylva was not a valid candidate for the forthcoming Bayelsa state governorship poll.
According to the court, the trial court was erred in having assumed jurisdiction in the matter on grounds that the plaintiff at the Federal High Court lacked the necessary locus standi to initiate the suit in the first place, having not participated in the primary election that produced Sylva as the flag bearer of the APC in the forthcoming election.
The appellate court said the issue of jurisdiction is fundamental in an election matter, and since the lower court had no jurisdiction in the first place, all actions taken in the matter are declared nullity.
The appellate court, in addition, stated that once a judgment is found to have been delivered without jurisdiction, “no matter how sound” it may be, “it is an exercise in futility”.
The appellate court subsequently voided the decision of Justice Donatus Okorowo, which nullified Sylva’s participation in the November 11 election.
The David Mark-led faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has approached the Court of Appeal to challenge the Federal High Court judgement that removed its leadership.
The opposition party also disclosed that it had filed an application seeking a stay of execution of the judgement pending the hearing and determination of its appeal.
The party made this known in a statement on Friday, November 6, adding that it had formally notified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of the legal steps taken,
The appeal is against the judgement delivered by the Federal High Court in Abuja on November 5, 2026, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1619/2025, involving Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe and the ADC.
The party urged INEC to refrain from taking any further action on the matter until the Court of Appeal has considered the case.
It argued that the application for a stay of execution was yet to be decided and that the electoral commission should not take any step that could affect the outcome of the appeal.
According to the ADC, it expects INEC to respect the ongoing legal process and allow the appellate court to hear the matter before making any decision connected to the judgement.
The statement partly read, “The ADC is exercising its lawful right to appeal. The judgement is now being challenged before a higher court, and the legal process must be allowed to run its course.
“We expect INEC to uphold the law and take full account of the pending proceedings before making any consequential decisions.”
The party also urged its members and supporters to remain calm, insisting that the court judgement would not stop its political activities.
It said its campaigns would continue while it explored all available legal options to defend its position.
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The Federal High Court in Abuja has nullified the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by Senator David Mark, declaring the caretaker committee that oversaw the party’s affairs illegal and invalidating all decisions taken by the committee.
The judgment, delivered on Thursday by Justice Peter Lifu, also affects the presidential primary that produced former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the ADC’s flag bearer for the 2027 general elections.
Atiku, whose name had earlier been published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the party’s presidential candidate, had already selected former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as his running mate.
The ruling followed a suit instituted by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former National Deputy Chairman (North-East) of the ADC, who challenged the process through which the David Mark-led leadership assumed control of the party.
Gombe argued that following the resignation of the party’s former National Chairman, Chief Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to take over the leadership.
He consequently asked the court to invalidate all actions undertaken by the Mark-led leadership and restrain Senator Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola from presenting themselves as the party’s National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively.
The plaintiff maintained that their emergence violated the ADC constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act.
In suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, the ADC, INEC, Senator David Mark, Aregbesola and Chief Ralph Nwosu were listed as defendants.
Justice Lifu upheld Gombe’s claims and granted the reliefs sought, effectively invalidating the authority of the caretaker committee and decisions taken under its leadership.
The verdict is expected to trigger fresh political uncertainty within the ADC, particularly over Atiku’s presidential ambition and the party’s preparations for the January 16, 2027 presidential election.
However, the party has vowed to challenge the judgment at the appellate court.
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