By Stephen Simon
The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal challenging the nomination of Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), affirming an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court.
In its judgment, the appellate court held that the appellant’s brief of argument was filed in breach of the court’s rules, having exceeded the permissible page limit prescribed under the Electoral Proceedings Practice Direction 2023.
Justice Banjoko, who delivered the lead judgment, upheld the preliminary objections raised by the respondents — the APC, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Governor Oyebanji — against the competence of the appellant’s brief filed on April 30.
The court held that the brief violated Paragraph 14(a) of the Electoral Proceedings Practice Direction 2023 and was therefore incompetent and liable to be struck out.
Having struck out the brief, the court found that the appeal was unsupported by valid arguments and consequently incompetent.
Justice Banjoko further held that even if the brief had been competent, the appeal would still have failed because the issues raised concerned the internal affairs of a political party, which are generally non-justiciable. The court also agreed with the trial court’s finding that the suit was statute-barred, having been filed outside the time allowed by law.
The Court of Appeal subsequently dismissed the appeal and affirmed the decision of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had ruled that the case was filed out of time, that the issues raised were not justiciable, and that Governor Oyebanji was duly nominated as the APC candidate for the June 20 governorship election.
The appellate court also allowed the cross-appeal filed by Governor Oyebanji challenging part of the judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court.
Delivering the lead judgment on the cross-appeal, Justice Oyebiola Oyewumi held that the trial judge erred in finding that the first cross-respondent, Mrs. Olawumi, qualified as an aspirant under the Constitution and the Electoral Act 2022.
The court resolved the sole issue for determination against Mrs. Olawumi and set aside the lower court’s finding that she was an aspirant within the meaning of the relevant provisions of the law.
The judgment effectively brings to an end the challenge to Governor Oyebanji’s nomination and reinforces his status as the validly nominated candidate of the APC.
