The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, have in a ruling on Friday, granted orders to the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party (LP), to interrogate the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on its conduct of the just concluded February 25 Presidential election and National Assembly election.
The court granted the orders after the two parties submitted separate ex-parte motions on Friday.
Justice Joseph Ikwegh granted the request after hearing Adedamola Faloku, who represented the PDP and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the party’s presidential candidate.
The presiding judge also granted permission to the Labour Party and Mr. Peter Obi, the party’s presidential candidate, on the same reasons.
LP and Obi’s ex-parte application was defended by Alex Ejeseme, SAN.
The attorneys for Atiku and the PDP had asked the court to grant the ex-parte application made in accordance with Section 146 (1) of the Electoral Act of 2022, Paragraph 47 (1, 2 and 3) of the first schedule of the Electoral Act of 2022, and under the inherent jurisdiction of the court as referenced by Section 6 (6) A and B of the 1999 Constitution.
The application requested seven prayers based on six reasons.
The attorney further disclosed to the court that the application, an 18-paragraph document accompanied by a 12-paragraph affidavit, also contained a schedule of the papers to be used in questioning the respondent (INEC).
The applicant’s attorney then embraced all of the affidavit’s allegations and pleaded with the court to approve the application.
The request of the petitioner was approved by presiding Judge Joseph Ikyegh.
The Labour Party’s presidential candidate Peter Obi also requested an ex-parte hearing, and the court heard his argument.
In addition, the court heard the ex-parte application Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, submitted to the court asking for the application to be considered.
Alex Ejeseme, SAN, the attorney for Peter Obi, had filed an ex-parte application with the court under the inherent jurisdiction of the court in accordance with Section 86 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, Section 146 of the Electoral Act 2022, and Paragraphs 47 (1 and 54) of the first schedule of the Electoral Act 2022.
Obi’s application, which was presented to the court, pleaded for six reliefs and had six justifications for doing so.
In addition, Ejeseme informed the court that they had sworn to a 15-paragraph affidavit and that they relied on all of the claims made in their application to ask the court to approve it.
