Yakubu Murtala & Ors v. Independent National Electoral Comission (INEC) & Ors (2024)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report – SUPREME COURT

ABUBAKAR SADIQ UMAR, JSC (Delivering the leading judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja delivered on the 11th day of July, 2024 whereby the lower court affirmed the decision of the Kogi State Governorship Election Tribunal dismissing the petition of the petitioners.

Dissatisfied with the said judgment of the lower court, the appellants filed an appeal to this court vide notice of appeal dated and filed on the 23rd day of July, 2024 containing twenty (20) grounds of appeal.

The 2nd respondent conducted Election on the 11th November, 2023 into the office of Governor, Kogi State. The 1st appellant contested the said election on the platform of the 2nd appellant.

The 2nd respondent also contested the election on the platform of the 3rd respondent and was returned by the 1st respondent as elected with 446,237 votes as opposed to the appellants 259,052 votes.

Displeased with the return of the 1st respondent, the Appellants sought and obtained certain pre-emptive orders on the 25th November, 2023 from the tribunal to enable them file and maintain election petition.

The orders inter alia included access to electoral documents as well as inspection of electoral documents needed to file and prosecute election petition. Consequent upon the said orders, the appellants filed election petition on 2nd December, 2023 before the tribunal challenging the return of the 2nd respondent.

The petition is predicated on three grounds of non qualification of the 2nd respondent at the time of the election, invalidity of the election by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act and failure of the 2nd respondents to score majority of lawful votes.

Upon the appellants motion No: EPT/KG/GOV/03/M13/2024, the trial tribunal made an order on the 14th of February, 2024 directing one Abdulmalik Njidda a staff of the 1st respondent to testify as a witness for the appellants notwithstanding that the statement on oath of the said witness had not been front-loaded with the Petition and despite opposition of the respondents. Pleadings were duly filed and exchanged on which parties joined issues. The respondents incorporated preliminary objections in their respective replies.

In the judgment delivered on 27th May, 2024, the tribunal overruled the objections of the respondents and proceeded to determine the petition on the merit. The tribunal expunged the evidence of Abdulmalik Njidda who testified as PW1 pursuant to the tribunals order of 14th February, 2024. BVAS machines tendered through PW1 were equally expunged on the premise that the appellants did not front-load the statement on oath of the said PW1. The tribunal ultimately dismissed the petition for lacking in merits.

Aggrieved by the Judgment of the tribunal, the appellants lodged an appeal to the lower court on 8th June, 2024. Briefs of arguments were duly filed and exchanged between the parties consequent upon which the appeal was heard on 4th July, 2024. In its judgment delivered on 11th July, 2024, the court resolved all the issues formulated for determination against the appellants, affirmed the decision of the tribunal and thereupon dismissed the appeal of the appellants. The appellants further aggrieved have filed this appeal.

The teams of learned senior counsel to the parties filed and adopted their respective briefs in support of their case. The issues distilled by the counsel are highlighted below.

Issues for determination

In the appellants brief dated the 2nd day of August, 2024 and settled by P. A. Akubo, SAN, learned senior counsel distilled the following three issues for determination in this appeal: