S’Court rules on Borno guber appeals Oct 31

Posted by admin Borno, Governors, Judiciary, State News Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

The Supreme Court has fixed October 31, 2011 to deliver judgement in the consolidated appeals bordering on the Borno State Governorship Election Petition where the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the April 26, 2011 polls, Alhaji Mohammed Goni is challenging the victory of Governor Kashim Shettima of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP).

The appeals; SC/332/2011, SC/352/2011 and SC/333/2011 are interlocutory appeals arisen from decisions of the Court of Appeals and they are to be resolved in order for the parties to know the way forward in respect of the substantive election petition.

In his own appeal with No. SC/332/2011, Governor Shetima has asked the apex court to set aside “an interim order stopping the trial tribunal from proceeding to deliver its ruling earlier slated for September 20, 2011.”
Counsel to the Governor, Yusuf Ali (SAN) prayed the five-man panel of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Walter Onnonghen to hold that the stay of proceedings granted by the Court of Appeal Jos was illegal.

Specifically, it was his submission that “contrary to the mandatory provisions of paragraph 18 of the Election Tribunal and Court Practice Direction 2011, made by President of the Court of Appeal for the regulation of proceedings before the trial tribunal which forbids the granting of stay of proceedings on an interlocutory appeal, from stopping the work of the tribunal.”
Consequently, he prayed the Supreme Court to set aside the ruling of the Court of Appeal, Jos, even as he asked the apex court for “an order remitting this matter to a different panel of the Court of Appeal constituted by the President of the court of appeal to be heard on merit.”

The panel of the Court of Appeal, Jos which the Governor Shettima wants the Supreme Court to make an order directing the President of the Court of appeal to constitute another panel for the purpose of hearing the matter on its merit is made up of Justices Clara Ogunbiyi, Chima Nweze and Uchechukwu Onyemenam.
On his part, counsel to Alhaji Mohammed Goni and PDP, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) and Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama (SAN), said that they proceeded to the Court of Appeal in order to ensure that their case before the election petition tribunal does not become extinct on November 13, 2011 pursuant to section 285 (6) of the 1999 constitution as amended.

“After the 13th of November, 2011, the appellant would have been shut out completely with regard to their challenge of the election into the office of the Governor and Deputy Governor of Borno State of Nigeria conducted on the April 26, 2011.”

In addition, Fagbemi stressed that for the mere fact that an interlocutory application is before an appellate court does not mean that a substantive judgment has been entered the tribunal to warrant counting of the 60 days constitutional provision within which the appellate court is supposed to resove the application in question.

-Sunwp_posts