Supreme Court Dismisses APC Governorship Candidate’s Appeal Over Kogi Primary Election
The Supreme Court, on Thursday, dismissed the appeal by a governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Kogi State, Abubakar Achimugu, hoping to have the primary election that selected Usman Ododo as the party’s nominee for the November 11 election annulled.
Appeal Withdrawn at Supreme Court
A group of Supreme Court justices, including John Inyang Okoro, Hellen M. Ogunwunmiju, Adamu Jarrow, Emmanuel Agim, and Tijani Abubakar, dismissed the appeal after it was withdrawn by the appellant.
Disqualification Claim: Background to the Lawsuit
Achimugu had filed a lawsuit in the trial court asking for Ododo to be disqualified on the grounds that he had not given notice of his resignation from the Kogi State public service 30 days prior to running for governor.
Court’s Verdict: Evidence of Resignation Timing
Contrary to Achimugu’s assertion, the evidence established that Ododo resigned his position more than 30 days before voting in the APC primary election, and as a result, the trial court dismissed the lawsuit.
Appeal Process: Federal High Court and Court of Appeal
The Federal High Court’s decision in Abuja was being appealed, but the Appeal Court determined unanimously that the appeal lacked merit and dismissed it as a result.
Supreme Court Hearing: Appellant’s Arguments
At the Supreme Court’s hearing of the appeal in the case Achimugu v. APC & 3 Ors, on Thursday, K. C. Udeh Oyibo, Achimugu’s lawyer, said that the respondents did not resign their appointments but later agreed that they resigned.
Supreme Court’s Decision: Dismissal of the Appeal
The Federal High Court’s and the Court of Appeal’s decisions were both deemed to be perverse, but the appellant’s counsel failed to raise any objections to this in his issues for resolution in the appellant’s brief, according to the Supreme Court.
Appeal Withdrawn: Case Dismissed
It was suggested to the appellant’s attorney to withdraw the appeal in light of this oversight. The case was ultimately dismissed after Achimugu withdrew his appeal.
Related Development: Postponement of Senator Smart Adeyemi’s Appeal
In a related development, the Supreme Court on Thursday postponed a decision on an appeal brought by Senator Smart Adeyemi concerning the Kogi APC governorship primary election until October 23, 2023.