COURT REFUSES TO HEAR BINANI’S MOTION SEEKING JUDICIAL REVIEW OF HER DECLARATION AS THE GOVERNOR-ELECT

A Federal High Court in Abuja has declined the request to hear an ex-parte motion filed by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa State, Senator Aisha Dahiru-Ahmed (Binani).

Justice Inyang Ekwo in a sitting on Tuesday, April 18th, 2023, ordered her lawyer, Mohammed Sheriff, to address the court on whether it possesses the jurisdiction to hear the motion relating to the happenings in Adamawa State.

The judge then adjourned till April 26th for the hearing of the ex-parte motion and the applicant’s address on jurisdiction.

Recall that Senator Aisha had in the ex-parte application marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/510/2023, applied for leave of the court to allow her to seek, “an order of prohibition and certiorari removing to this court for the purpose of being set aside, the administrative decision of the 1st Respondent made on 16th April 2023 in respect to the declaration of the winner from the gubernatorial election of Adamawa State held on the 18th of March, 2023 and the supplementary election held on 15th April 2023″.

The application was brought pursuant to Order 34 Rules 1a, Order 3(1) & 3(2) a, b, c, Order 6 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure Rules), 2019 and Section 251 (1)q & r of the 1999 Constitution, as well as Section 149 & 152 of the Electoral Act, 2022.

Giving grounds why the motion should be granted, Binani stated that after the collation of results, the electoral umpire declared her the winner of the elections but the PDP and its candidate, Gov. Fintiri, resorted to fighting and causing a public disturbance which led to the beating and manhandling of an INEC staff.

This crisis, Binani said, led INEC to cancel the initial declaration, which it had no power to do, as only the election petition tribunal is vested with such power.

In the application, she averred that a judicial review exists to enable the superior court checkmate the actions and decisions of inferior courts as well as the legislative and administrative arm of government, including agencies and public officers.

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