Court Clears APC To Hold Convention

Posted by Nwa Diokpa Abuja, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria Friday, March 18th, 2022

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday, March 18, 2022, issued an order vacating the restraining injunction against the National Convention of the All Progressives Congress fixed for March 26th.
Justice Bello Kawu in his ruling stated that a member of a political party can’t sue the party.
African Examiner reports that Kawu vacated the order relying on a recent Supreme Court decision which held that a party member does not have the right to take the party to court. The court fixed March 30 for the substantive suit.
Recall, an aggrieved member of the ruling party, Salisu Umoru, had approached the court to restrain the party, the Caretaker Chairman of the party, Mai Mala Buni, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from organising the National Convention of the party until the determination of the suit.
He had further sought an “Interlocutory injunction restraining the 1st and 2nd defendants/respondent (APC and Governor Buni), their allies, agents, representatives, associates or whoever is acting for them or through them from organising, holding or conducting the national convention of the APC in January and February 2022 or any other date either before or after pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.”
In response, APC submitted an application to the court dated March 9, 2022, asking for “an order of this honourable court striking out the suit in its entirety for want of jurisdiction… and for such other order(s) as the honourable court may deem fit in the circumstance.”
However, Governor Mai Mala Buni on Thursday, March 17, 2022, resumed work at the APC secretariat after being abroad for 17 days where he reportedly went for medication.
NAN