The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed an appeal filed against Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate.
The court also upheld the lower court’s ruling, which had previously dismissed the suit for lack of merit.
The court upheld the preliminary objections filed by the office of Babatunde Ogala (SAN) & Co on behalf of the APC because the suit at the lower court was not a pre-election matter. After all, the appellant cannot be said to be a person covered by Section 285(14) a, b, and c of the 1999 Constitution being a Non-governmental Organization in a judgment delivered on Friday (NGO).
It further found that the removal of the second defendant’s name at the lower court meant that the lower court’s ruling was not challenged, and therefore the court dismissed the Notice of Appeal as incompetent.
On the merits of the case, the Court of Appeal ruled that the appeal lacked substance and that the appellant only attempted to resurrect the disbanded NGO through the back door, and that the appellant’s counsel, who is also a trustee of the NGO, should have this in mind.
The court further found that the appellant was not clothed with locus, as indicated in Sections 285(14) a, b, and c of the 1999 Constitution. Court also ruled that the appellant is a bothersome invader.
Upon dismissing the appeal, the appellate court ordered N100,000.00 apiece to the appellant and the first through fourth respondents.
On December 15, 2022, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division dismissed a suit filed by Emeka Nwajuba (former Minister of State for Education) and Incorporated Trustees of Rights for all International against the APC and Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the case FHC/ABJ/CS/ 942/ 2022.
Additional defendants include the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Attorney General of the Federation Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
