Abuja: Respite came the way of Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State on Friday, as the Supreme Court, declined to sack him from office over allegation that he falsified his age. The suit was lodged before the apex court by a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Mr. Joe Agi.
The appellant who came second in the gubernatorial primary election the PDP held in th state on December 8, 2014, insisted tha Ayade lied about his age.
He adduced exhibits before the court showing that governor Ayade had in three different affidavits that were deposed on oath, supplied conflicting dates as his year of birth. Specifically, the evidence before the court showed that the 3rd respondent (Ayade) had in the Nomination Form, Code PD 003/G, which he used to contest the Cross River state election, stated on oath that he was born on March 2, 1969.
However, the age declaration he attached to the form, which his brother Frank Ayade sworn to before a Cross River state High Court sitting at Oleh on February 1, 2007, indicated that the defendant was born in 1968.
More so, the plaintiff tendered in a evidence a document that showed that the governor, while applying for admission in the University of Ibadan, gave an age declaration stating that he was born on March 2, 1966.
The bio data was allegedly issued by the University itself. Besides, the appellant maintained that Ayade had already lost his membership of the PDP as at the time the primary election was held, owing to his failure to meet his financial obligations to the party.
Agi argued that consistent failure of the 3rd respondent (Ayade) to pay his dues, made him ineligible to be sponsored by the party for the gubernatorial contest. He prayed the apex court to set aside th verdict which the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal delivered in Ayade’s favour on February 5.
