Justice Inyang Ekwo of a Federal High Court, Abuja, has dismissed the suit filed by the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate in the Adamawa governorship election, Aisha Dahiru-Ahmed, popularly called Binani.
The suit was against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Recall that the APC candidate had prayed to the court to institute a judicial review of INEC’s decision to reverse her earlier announcement as winner of the poll by the state’s Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Hudu Yunusa-Ari.
Binani’s Counsel, Mohammed Sheriff, upon resuming hearing in the matter on Wednesday, told Justice Ekwo that a notice of discontinuance had been filed to that effect and urged the court to strike out the case.
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The lawyer, who informed the court that a lot of issues had come up between the last date of adjournment and the present, begged for the suit to be struck out.
But Justice Ekwo reminded Sheriff that an order was given on the last adjourned date directing him to address the court on whether the court had the jurisdiction to entertain the case or not.
The judge held that since Sheriff had failed to go by the order of the court, the appropriate thing to do was to dismiss the matter.
“I hereby make an order dismissing this suit,” Justice Ekwo declared.
The judge had, on April 18, refused to hear an ex-parte motion filed by Binani.
Ekwo, instead, ordered the APC candidate’s counsel to address the court on the issue of jurisdiction before hearing the substantive motion.
The judge said though he was ready to hear Sheriff, the lawyer must address the court on the issue of jurisdiction before he proceeded.
He held that the application would be taken together with the issue of jurisdiction on the next adjourned date and adjourned until April 26 for a hearing.
The electoral umpire had, on April 19, declared the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s candidate and Gov. Ahmadu Fintiri the winner of the governorship election held in the state
Binani and APC, in the motion ex-parte marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/510/2023, had sued INEC, PDP, and its candidate, Gov. Fintiri as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respondents respectively.
