Nigeria: Atiku - S/Court Set to Review Appeal Court's Verdict On Iwu - AllAfrica.com

Ise-Oluwa IgeLagos

BARELY three and a one-half calendar months after the Court of Entreaty sitting as Presidential Election Request Court held that the contiguous past times Frailty President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, drop in mistake for suing the President of INEC, Prof Maurice Iwu, in person, over the behavior of the April 21, 2007 presidential poll, the Supreme Court yesterday re-opened the issue at the case of both President Umaru Yar'Adua and Atiku Abubakar.

But the vertex tribunal yesterday said it would not be able to do a rich and informed dictum on the issue until when political parties in difference have got entered all their written statements on the matter.

The tribunal consequently directed political parties to register their written computer addresses on the issue. Justice Niki Tobi presided over the Supreme Court panel that sat on the legal issue yesterday. He gave September 22, this twelvemonth as tax return day of the month on the legal issue for mention.

Yar'adua together with INEC, had at the pre-hearing phase of the request filed by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to invalidate the April.21, 2007 presidential opinion poll held countrywide asked the Court of Entreaty to disregard Atiku's petition.

Both Yar'Adua and INEC had maintained that Atiku's request was not competent in law and ought to be struck out because the alleviations allegedly claimed therein were contradictory, inconsistent, mutually sole and mutually divergent..

They also asked the tribunal to hit out Prof Iwu's name from the Atiku's request on the land that Iwu is not a juristic person.

But the Court of Entreaty sitting as Presidential Election request Court refused the twin invitation by both Yar'Adua and INEC, saying Iwu having entered a conditional visual aspect in the lawsuit and having joined issues with Atiku who sued him could not have got his name sruck out at the clip because he cried out too late.

The five-member tribunal headed by Justice Ogebe also held "the issue of joinder of Prof Iwu and the claim by Yar'Adua that Atiku have made a contradictory, inconsistent and mutually differing claims in word form of alleviations cannot be entertained without touching on the virtue of the substantial lawsuit before this court.

"I therefore throw that this tribunal have full legal power to entertain this request to enable political parties ventillate their grievances. I disregard both applications," .

The application lost by both Yar'Adua and INEC was painful to them as Yar'Adua came on entreaty to Supreme Court to change by reversal the verdict.

But while the interlocutory entreaty was pending at the Supreme Court, the panel of the Court of Entreaty which sat as presidential election request tribunal and headed by Justice Jesse James Ogenyi Ogebe determined the two issues raised in the interlocutory appeal.

First, the Court of Appeal, in its judgement on the Atiku's request held that Atiku's alleviations were contradictory, inconsistent and mutually divergent.

The tribunal said that ordinarily, based on its determinations that Atiku's alleviations were contradictory, it said it ought not to see the request on its virtuousness but that out of abundanti cautelia, it would.

The tribunal also struck out the name of Prof Maurice Iwu from the request maintained by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to dispute the electoral triumph of President Umaru Genus Musa Yar'Adua.

The appellant tribunal had held that by virtue of the commissariat of the Electoral Act 2006, it said Iwu was not a juristic individual that could be sued as a political party in the case.

The tribunal had said that what Atiku could make at best was to litigate him in his functionary capacity and not in his private capacity.

The tribunal had also struck out all paragraphs in Atiku's request alleging one thing or the other against Iwu.

Even though the Court of Entreaty had decided the twin legal issues, both political parties in the interlocutory entreaty would not retreat from it.

They both said that the dictum of the vertex court would enrich the nation's law and would steer future election suppliants on whether or not to fall in main electoral military officers in their request while ambitious the consequences of the election.

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According to Head Emeka Ngige (SAN) who led a squad of lawyers that represented Atiku Abubakar in the lawsuit yesterday, he said the vertex tribunal would no doubt remark on the mental attitude of the tribunal of entreaty pronouncing on issues already submitted to a higher court.

But Yusuf Muhammad Ali (SAN) said whatever the dictum of the vertex tribunal would not change anything except that it would enrich the nation's jurisprudence.

He defended the tribunal of appeal's action.He said it would have got been a different ball game if the supreme tribunal had earlier made a dictum on the twin legal issue before the tribunal of entreaty made a reverse findings of fact on them.

Nigeria: Presidential Election Tribunal Chairman Elevated to S'court - AllAfrica.com

Sufuyan OjeifoAbuja

President Umaru Genus Musa Yar' Adua have forwarded the name of Justice Jesse James Ogebe of the Entreaty Court and President of the Presidential Election Petitions Court to the Senate for verification as justness of the Supreme Court.

Also forwarded to the Senate was the name of Justice Mukhtar Coomasie of the Entreaty Court.

The nominations, which are in conformity with Section 231 (2) of the 1999 Constitution, were contained in an executive director director communicating read yesterday by the Senate President, Senator Saint David Mark, on the flooring of the Senate.

But there were fearfulnesses last nighttime that the nomination of Ogebe for assignment as justness of the Supreme Court may have got got got deductions for the handling of the requests before the Presidential Elections Tribunal.

With his nomination, some believe Justice Ogebe may have been rendered functious officio, meaning he have ceased to have the competency to sit down over the petition.

The Presidential Election Request Court have already reserved judgement in the amalgamate request of the Action Con-gress (AC) campaigner in the April 21, 2007 presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and his All Federal Republic Of Federal Republic Of Federal Republic Of Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) counterpart, Major-Gen. Muham-madu Buhari.

Both Atiku and Buhari are challenging the election of President Yar'Adua astatine the tribunal.

Last night, the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) described the nomination of Ogebe as ego serving and executive recklessness.

The nominations of the two justnesses followed the recommendation of the National Judicial Council (NJC).

Ogebe and Coomasie will replace former Head Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Alfa Belgore, and Justice Umaru Kalgo who recently retired from the bench of the Supreme Court.

Ogebe acclaims from Benue State in the North-central zone, while Mukhtar come ups from Kaduna State in North-west zone.

Yar' Adua appealed to the lawmakers to handle the verification of the nominations of Ogebe and Coomasie expeditiously.

Already, the listing of the two campaigners have been referred to the Committee on Judiciary, Person Rights and Legal Matters headed by Senator Umaru Dahiru for screening.

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The commission is expected to show a study to the Senate recommending their verification or otherwise.

But in his statement, the National Promotion Secretary of CNPP, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, said Ogebe's nomination at this point in clip was ego serving, executive director foolhardiness and not due influence "aimed at corruption of the regulation of law."

"It put a moral load on justice, for he who pays the bagpiper orders tune. Why the haste when the lawsuit on his tabular array have not been dispensed with. He who pays the bagpiper orders the tune," he said.