The Court of Appeal Abuja division
on Monday ordered President Muhammadu Buhari to respond within five days to the
appeal filed against his qualification for the 2019 presidential election.
The court also ordered the All
Progressives Congress (APC), and the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to within five respond to all
issues raised on the educational qualification of the president in the
election.
Justice Datti Yayaya who issued
the order also directed that Buhari’s counsel, Mr. Abdullahi Abubakar, to
within the period file necessary processes in relation to the appeal.
The appeal was filed by Agu Kalu, Labaran Ismail, and Hassy El-Kuris.
The decision of the appellate
court was sequel to a motion on notice filed by counsel to the appellants, Mr.
Uchenna Ndubuisi.
Ndubuisi prayed the Court of
Appeal in the motion to abridge within which Buhari, APC, and INEC will join
issues with the appellants on the certificate suit.
Abubakar and Mr. Temitayo Lasaki
counsel for APC had urged the appellate court in their response to the motion
to give them five days to enable them to file their respondents’ brief of
argument along with other processes so as to set the stage for the hearing of
the substantive appeal.
Kalu, Ismail, and El-Kuris had
approached the appellate court to nullify and set aside the Judgment of the
Abuja division of the Federal High Court.
The lower court had declined to
hear their suit instituted to challenge the educational qualification of
President Buhari before the conduct of the 2019 general election.
The appellants in their appeal
are asking the appellate court to reverse the judgment of Justice Ahmed
Mohammed on the grounds that the processes filed by Buhari and used to strike
out their suit were not competent.
While faulting the Judgment of
the High Court, which was predicated on the grounds that the suit was statute
barred, the appellants claimed that the Federal High Court erred in law and in
its decision.
This they said was because they
did not challenge the primary election that produced Buhari as the candidate of
the APC.
They, therefore, urged the Court
of Appeal to assume jurisdiction over the suit and grant all the reliefs sought
at the Federal High Court but which were refused.
Among the reliefs were a declaration
that Buhari submitted false information regarding his qualification and
certificate to INEC for the purpose of contesting election into the office of
the President of Nigeria and that he should be disqualified.
They also prayed for an order of
the court directing INEC to remove Buhari’s name as a candidate of APC.
Also, an order restraining Buhari
from parading himself as a candidate in the 2019 presidential election and also
APC from recognizing Buhari as a candidate.
The Federal High Court had on May
2 declined to grant the request of the appellants on the grounds that the suit
was not filed within the time allowed by law and therefore sustained the
preliminary objection raised by Buhari at the hearing.
But not satisfied, the appellants
are now asking the Court of Appeal to grant their reliefs because they are not
challenging the primary election of APC as erroneously held by the lower court.
They said they are challenging
the qualification of Buhari to stand for the presidential election without
demonstrating his educational certificates as required by law.
July 8 was fixed for hearing of
the appeal, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
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