A Federal High Court sitting in Akure, the Ondo State capital, has dismissed a suit challenging the eligibility of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and his deputy, Olayide Adelami, for the November 16, 2024 governorship election in the state.
The suit was filed by Olugbenga Edema, the governorship candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), who sought a court order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the nominations of Aiyedatiwa, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, and his deputy. Edema, who switched to the NNPP after losing in the APC primaries, alleged that Aiyedatiwa’s APC governorship ticket was fraudulently obtained, a claim that Aiyedatiwa has refuted.
Edema approached the court for an interpretation of Section 15 of the Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), in relation to the APC candidates’ nomination.
The suit named Edema and NNPP as plaintiffs, with Aiyedatiwa, Adelami, INEC, and APC as defendants. However, the NNPP, the second plaintiff, sought to withdraw from the suit, and the court granted the request, striking the party’s name from the case.
When the case was heard on Monday, the plaintiff’s counsel, Soladoye Ekundayo, informed the court that he had filed an appeal against the ruling that struck out NNPP’s name and requested an adjournment to amend his pleadings.
However, counsel for the defendants, including Aiyedatiwa, Adelami, INEC, and APC, argued for the dismissal of the suit due to a lack of diligent prosecution. Charles Edosomwan, representing the defendants, explained that the plaintiff had failed to make necessary applications and had not complied with the court’s order to amend pleadings.
In her ruling, Justice Toyin Bolaji Adegoke stated that the filing of an appeal did not automatically halt proceedings and criticized the plaintiff for failing to comply with the court’s order. She described the plaintiff’s actions as self-serving and noted that the failure to amend the pleadings had severely affected the case. As a result, the court dismissed the suit and imposed a N100,000 fine on the plaintiff, ruling that an adjournment was not warranted.
