A Federal High Court, Abuja Division, has disqualified the APC deputy governorship candidate in Bayelsa State, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, from participating in Saturday’s election.
The court in a decision on Tuesday said Mr Degi-Eremienyo provided conflicting information in his documents submitted to the electoral commission, INEC. The court agreed with the arguments of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that Mr Degi-Eremienyo gave false information in support of his candidacy to the INEC.
The PDP had asked the court to regard the discrepancies in Mr Degi-Eremienyo’s certificates as major impediments to his candidacy. The Bayelsa governing party accused the APC running mate of providing different names at all levels of his education.
The PDP alleged in its case brought before Justice Inyang Ekwo that while Mr Degi-Eremienyo’s name was written as Degi Biobara in his primary school certificate, the documents from his secondary education bore Adegi Biobarakumo, as his name, while that of his university education had Degi Biobarakuma as his name. Also, the PDP said the result from his MBA certificate had Degi Biobarakuma Wangaha as the name of the same person.
The court agreed with the PDP that the affidavits sworn to support the changes in the names were insufficient to validate the changes.