Action Congress Of Nigeria & Ors V. Labour Party & Anor (2012)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

HON. JUSTICE ISAIAH OLUFEMI AKEJU, J.C.A (Delivering the Leading Ruling)

The applicants are by this motion on notice filed on 24th January, 2012 seeking the following:

An Order granting leave to the Interested Parties/Applicants to appeal against the judgment of the Federal High Court, Calabar presided over by Honourable Justice A. F. A. Ademola delivered on the 11th day of November, 2011 in Suit No. FHC/CA/CS/81/2011, and Any Further Order (s) as this Honourable Court may deem it fit to make in the circumstances.

The grounds for the application are stated as follows:

1. The 1st Applicant, Action Congress of Nigeria, CAN is a Political Party in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, registered by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC and empowered to sponsor or nominate candidates to contest elections into Public Offices such as the President, Vice President, National Assembly, Governorship of a State and State House of Assembly;
2. The 2nd-24th Applicants are candidates nominated by the 1st Applicant and that contested election held in April, 2011, under the Platform of the 1st Applicant for the National and State House of Assembly in Cross River State;
3. The National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives;
4. The 1st Respondent is also a Political Party registered by the independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and empowered to sponsor or nominate candidates to contest election into Public Offices such as the President, Vice President, National Assembly, Governorship of State and State House of Assembly;
5. The 1st Respondent had sued the 2nd Respondent by Originating Summons in Suit No. FHC/CS/CA/81/2011 in Federal High Court, Calabar Judicial Division between Labour Party V. National Electoral Commission seeking the following reliefs:

(i) A DECLARATION that the provisions of the Electoral Act as amended and assented on the 29th December, 2010, were effective as at the 4th, 6th, 7th & 13th days of January, 2011.

(ii) A DECLARATION that the Guidelines issued by the Defendants hereof pursuant to the Electoral Act and prior to the amendment of the Act on the 29th December, 2010 were valid and subsisting as at the 4th, 6th, 7th & 13th days of January, 2011.

(iii) A DECLARATION that in the light of the failure by a political party to comply with the express provision of Section 87 (4) of the Electoral Act as amended in December, 2010, the Defendant ought to disqualify the said party from presenting candidates in Cross River State for April, 2010 elections.

(iv) A DECLARATION that in the circumstances, the Peoples Democratic Party has no candidate whatsoever with respect to the April, 2011 election and further, that the Defendants, publication of the list of PDP candidates in Cross River State for the 2011 elections is a nullity.

(v) A DECLARATION that the derogation from the right of the Defendants to “not reject or disqualify candidates for any reason whatsoever as provided under Section 31 (1) of said (sic) the Electoral Act as amended is limited to failure by the political parties to not later than 60 days before the date appointed for a general election submit to the Defendant in the prescribed forms, the list of the candidates the party proposes to sponsor at the elections and certainly not extended to other acts or omission or commission of political parties in particular the failure of the Peoples Democratic Party to comply with Section 87 (4) in conjunction with Section 85 of the Act and indeed other sections of the Act is to render the Defendant a toothless bulldog incapable of effectively regulating elections in Nigeria.

(vi) A DECLARATION that the legal effect of the word “shall” in Section 87 (4) in conjunction with Section 85 of the Electoral Act made it mandatory for political parties to wit the Peoples Democratic Party to conduct Ward Congresses to determine delegates for the purpose of adopting Indirect Primaries method which it in fact did adopt.

(vii) AN ORDER restraining the Defendant from publishing, disseminating and howsoever implementing the results of the so called primaries organized by the Peoples Democratic Party in the light of the complaints enumerated above.

(viii) AN ORDER mandating the defendant to disqualify the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidates in Cross River State from contesting in the April, 2010 elections.

At the hearing of this application on 30/1/2012, the Applicants and the 1st Respondent were represented by counsel. Learned counsel for the 1st Respondent Remi Agwuezie Esq. indicated his intention not to oppose the application, while Chief Obono-Obla simply moved in terms of the motion paper and the ruling thereon was reserved.

It must be understood that this application is for the leave of this court for the applicants to appeal against the judgment of Hon. Justice A. F. A. Ademola delivered in Suit No. FHC/CA/81/2011. It has been brought pursuant to Section 243 (a) of the Constitution of the Federal of Nigeria 1999 the material part of which states: