By Innocent Anaba
A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, yesterday, upheld the candidacy of a former Lagos State Secretary of All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr Wasiu Eshilokun as the candidate of the party for Apri 11, election into Lagos Island Constituency 1 of Lagos State House of Assembly.

Trial judge Justice Ibrahim Buba, also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to immediately recognise Eshilokun as the APC candidate for the state House of Assembly poll.

Eshilokun had challenged the substitution of his name as APC candidate with that of one Hakeem Masha, who according to him, lost the primary election.

Eshilokun, also a former Chairman of Lagos Island Local Government Area, had joined APC, INEC and Masha as respondents in the suit.

Eshilokun had contended that he polled 186 votes to beat seven other candidates for the primary election conducted by the APC to select a candidate for Lagos Island Constituency 1.

According to him, his name was surprisingly substituted with Masha, who polled 70 votes, a development which forced him to file the suit.

Trial judge, Justice Buba, in a judgment, dismissed the four preliminary objections filed by the APC represented by Femi Falana, SAN and Masha represented by Bonojo Badejo, SAN.

In his judgment, Justice Buba, who cited plethora of authorities, held that the suit was initiated with due process, and that from the records, it was clear that the parties were adequately and properly served.

The judge added that it was instructive that the defendants never denied the fact that Eshilokun contested and won the primary election and that his name was initially forwarded to INEC as the candidate of the APC.

The judge also relied on a letter written by the APC asking INEC to recognise Eshilokun as its candidate.

The judge, therefore, ordered INEC to recognise Eshilokun as APC candidate.

Justice Buba also restrained Masha from parading himself as the candidate of the APC for election into Lagos Island Constituency 1 of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

According to the matter, Eshilokun had urged the court to determine whether upon a proper construction and interpretation of Sections 33, 34, 35, 36 and 37 of the Electoral Act 2010, the respondents (APC and INEC) were lawfully entitled to substitute his name with the name of Masha, having won the majority lawful votes in the primaries conducted by the party.

He had specifically asked the court to declare that the second respondent (Masha) having lost the primaries of the party with respect to Lagos Island Constituency 1 to him (Eshilokun) woefully and the applicant having not withdrawn his nomination, Masha was not entitled to be nominated to INEC by APC as the candidate of the party for Lagos Island Constituency 1 in the forthcoming House of Assembly election in the state.