The Supreme Court has rejected the appeal of Abubakar Achimugu, a governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi State, who sought to overturn the party’s primary election that produced Usman Ododo as the governorship candidate for the November 11 election in the state.
Supreme Court panel, headed by Justice Inyang Okoro, rejects Achimugu’s appeal against Ododo.
Achimugu had filed a suit in the Federal High Court, aiming to disqualify Ododo on the basis that he did not resign from his position in the Kogi State public service 30 days before the governorship primary election. The appeal was subsequently dismissed by a panel of Supreme Court justices
However, the trial court’s judgment refuted Achimugu’s assertion, presenting evidence that Ododo had resigned his position over 30 days before the APC primary election. As a result, the court dismissed the case.
The court pointed out that exhibits provided by the defendants indicated that Ododo’s resignation letter was received by the Office of the Kogi State Governor on March 8, while that of the third defendant, Mr. Salami Deedat, was received on March 9.
The Appeal Court, in a unanimous decision, found the appeal contesting the Federal High Court’s judgment in Abuja to be without merit and subsequently dismissed it.
During the Supreme Court hearing, Achimugu’s lawyer initially argued that the respondents hadn’t resigned from their positions, but later conceded that they had indeed resigned.
The Supreme Court raised questions for the Appellant’s Counsel regarding the absence of any challenge in the appellant’s brief regarding why both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal decisions were deemed erroneous.
Due to this oversight, the Appellant’s Counsel was encouraged to retract the appeal. Consequently, Achimugu opted to withdraw his appeal, resulting in the dismissal of the case.