2023: Court Throws Out Suit On Atiku’s Eligibility To Contest
A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Monday dismissed a suit challenging former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s eligibility to run for the office of the president.
The trial Judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo while dismissing the suit, ruled that the plaintiff lacked the legal right (locus standi) to institute the case.
Justice Ekwo described the plaintiff “Incorporated Trustees of Egalitarian Mission for Africa (EMA),” as a busy body and meddlesome interloper.
The plaintiff, in a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/177/2019 sued Atiku, the PDP, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as 1st to 4th respondents respectively and challenged Atiku’s eligibility to contest Nigeria’s presidential election on the basis of his ‘questioned’ Nigerian citizen by birth.
The plaintiff in the suit urged the court to ruled among others, that considering the provisions of Sections 25(1) &(2) and 131(a) of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 as amended and the circumstances surrounding Atiku’s birth, the former Vice President cannot contest for the office of the president.
The Adamawa State Government, through its Attorney-General (AG), sought an order of the court to be joined in the suit and the Court in a motion dated April 26 and filed June 24, granted the prayer of the Attorney General of Adamawa to be joined in the case as 5th defendant.
The Adamawa State Government had told the court that Atiku was eligible to vie for the office of the president, stressing that the former Vice President is a citizen of Nigeria from Adamawa who had been elected as a Governor of the state in 1999 and also served as the vice president of Nigeria from May 1999 to 2007.
It noted that the suit threatened the right of not just Atiku to contest the office of the president but that of the citizens of Nigeria particularly that of Adamawa origin covering 12 out of the 21 Local Government Areas in the state.
