Hon. Godwin Eshieshi V. Suleiman Adbulmalik Afegbua & Anor (2014)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

AYOBODE OLUJIMI LOKULO-SODIPE, J.C.A. (Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This appeal is against the ruling delivered on 28/5/2013 by the High Court of Edo State holden in Agenebode (hereafter simply referred to as ‘the lower court”) presided over by V.O.A. Oviawe, J; (hereafter simply referred to as “the learned trial Judge”). The lower Court in its ruling in question held that it had no jurisdiction to hear and determine the claims of the Appellant (as Claimant before it) and consequently struck out the Appellant’s case.

The Appellant commenced the instant action before the Lower Court against three Defendants by a writ which issued on 8/3/2013. The three Defendants in the case are: (i) the 1st Respondent herein as the 1st Defendant; (ii) Action Congress of Nigeria (hereafter simply referred to as “ACN”) as the 2nd Defendant; and (iii) the 2nd Respondent herein as the 3rd Defendant. A Statement of Claim dated 28/2/2013 was filed along with the writ.

The case set up by the Appellant in the process is to the effect that he and the 1st Respondent are members of ACN which is a registered political party in Nigeria with a Secretariat in Benin. Both the Appellant and the 1st Respondent were also aspirants for the chairmanship position in Etsako East Local Government Council of Edo State, but after the screening undertaken by the State Screening Committee of ACN headed by Chief John Odige Oyegun, the 1st Respondent was found non-eligible or unqualified to contest the primary election of ACN held on 9/2/2013 in Etsako East Local Government Area.

The Appellant claimed to have scored 5,901 votes and that he emerged as the winner and popular choice of ACN at the primary of ACN conducted on 9/2/2013 to nominate or select the chairmanship candidate of ACN for Etsako East Local Government Council of Edo State in the Local Government elections slated for 20/4/2013. That though the 1st Respondent still contested the primary election of ACN despite his non-qualification, he scored 1,145 votes while one Oba Peter Stephen, the third aspirant scored 78 votes.

It is the case of the Appellant that despite the fact that he overwhelmingly won the primary election of ACN for the chairmanship position in Etsako East Local Government Council, the 1st Respondent began a desperate move to undermine the will and popular choice of the members of ACN in Etsako East Local Government Area to have the results of the primary election discarded and that ACN has indeed forwarded the name of the 1st Respondent who did not score the highest number of votes at the primary election in question, to the 2nd Respondent herein, in breach of the extant law on the subject.

It is also the case of the Appellant that not only is ACN bound to forward his name to the 2nd Respondent as ACN’s chairmanship candidate for Etsako East Local Government Council, in the Local Government elections scheduled for 20/4/2013, but that the 1st Respondent has inherent tax problems which disqualify him from contesting the said Local Government elections scheduled for 20/4/2013 under the Edo State Local Government Law, 2012.

In the premise of the facts averred in the Statement of Claim, the Appellant claimed against the three Defendants before the lower court jointly and severally as follows: –

“(a) A declaration that the Claimant having secured the highest number of votes at the 2nd Defendant’s primary election conducted in Etsako East Local Government area on 9th February, 2013 for the purpose of selecting the 2nd Defendant’s candidate for the Etsako East Local Government Chairmanship election fixed for 20th April, 2013, the Claimant has thereby emerged the chairmanship candidate of the 2nd Defendant for the said election and he is entitled to have his name forwarded to the 3rd Defendant as the 2nd Defendant’s chairmanship candidate for the aforesaid election.

(b) A declaration that the 1st Defendant having been disqualified from contesting the aforesaid election by the 2nd Defendant’s State Screening Committee for 2013 Local Government elections, 1st Defendant was not eligible to have participated in the 2nd Defendant’s aforesaid primary election held on 9th February, 2013 and all votes cast for him at the election are consequently null and void.

(c) A declaration that the 1st Defendant is not qualified to be presented by the 2nd Defendant to the 3rd Defendant as its chairmanship candidate for Etsako East Local Government election scheduled for Etsako East Local Government for 20th April, 2013 on the grounds already adumbrated above.

(d) A declaration that the purported submission of 1st Defendant’s name to the 3rd Defendant by the 2nd Defendant is a flagrant violation of Section 15(1)(d), 16(1)(b)(ii) and 23(2) of Edo State Local Government Electoral Law, 2012 and the regulations and guidelines issued thereunder for the Local Government elections, 2013 and consequently, invalid, null and void.

(e) A declaration that the Claimant remains the 2nd Defendant’s chairmanship candidate for Etsako East Local Government for the election scheduled for 20th April, 2013 in the eyes of the law governing the conduct of the said election.

(f) An order of injunction restraining the 3rd Defendant from recognizing the 1st Defendant or any other person other than the Claimant as the 2nd Defendant’s chairmanship candidate for the Etsako East Local Government for Edo State Local Government election scheduled for 20th April, 2013.”