Following the controversy over the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, General Muhamadu Buhari’s certificate, a lawyer, Mr Chike Okafor, has approached the Federal High Court, to disqualify General Buhari from contesting the 2015 presidential election.

 The case is suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/01/2015. It is based on section 131 of the Constitution, which prescribes a minimum qualification for nomination to participate in presidential election and section 31 of the Electoral Act that stipulates all presidential candidates to depose an affidavit in proof of compliance with constitutional requirement to be President of Nigeria.

The claimant claims that General Buhari failed to prove that he had the minimum educational qualification to contest for the election. The claimant further claimed that General Buhari’s affidavit certifying his West African School Leaving Certificate (WASC) is false, and also claims that the certificates in the custody of the military had been denied by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Olajide Laleye.

Mr Okafor had requested the Federal High Court to disqualify General Buhari from contesting the 2015 presidential election.

The claimant also said that his action was backed by section 31(5) of the Electoral Act that allows a person that had reasonable grounds to believe that false information had been given by a candidate in his affidavit or document submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in support of his nomination form, to approach the court for the candidate to be disqualified.