Photo: Gov Lalong
Court stops Gov Lalong from standing in for Tinubu, APC
The Presidential Election Petition Court sitting in Abuja, on Monday, barred Gov Simon Lalong of Plateau State from entering appearance before it as the representing of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
Lalong had stood up and announced himself as Tinubu’s representative immediately the first petition that was lodged against the outcome of the February 25 presidential election was called up,
“My Lords, my name is Simon Lalong and I am here to represent Tinubu,” the governor announced.
However, Justice Haruna Tsammani, who leads the five-member panel, declined to recognize Lalong as Tinubu’s representative.
He said, “You cannot represent an individual. Tinubu is not a corporation that would need a representative.
Responding, Lalong said, “My Lords, in that case, I will represent the All Progressives Congress, APC.“
The governor’s second request too was declined by the panel, in what appeared to have been a deliberately premeditated mild drama orchestrated by the governor.
Periscope International recalls that Lalong was the Director-General of Tinubu’s defunct Presidential Campaign Council, which successfully midwifed the APC’s campaign to eventual victory.
Tinubu, however, lost the presidential election in Plateau State to Mr Peter Obi of the Labour Party, while Lalong himself lost his senatorial bid and the state’s governorship election to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
PDP also won two out of three senatorial seats, five out of eight House of Reps seats and sixteen out of 24 House of Assembly seats in Plateau State.
