Court Assumes Jurisdiction in Suit Seeking Removal of LP Chairman, Others

Justice Hamza Muazu of an Abuja High Court on Friday held that the court has jurisdiction to entertain suit filed by some members of the Labour Party (LP), seeking the removal of the party’s National Chairman, Julius Abure; the National Organising Secretary, Mr. Clement Ojukwu and National Treasurer, Oluchi Opara.

Justice Muazu held that it was no longer the law that the court cannot adjudicate in political parties’ matter, saying if the party had been at peace with itself, there would not be any need for the court to interfere in its affairs.

Muazu, who held that the plaintiffs’ case was justiciable contrary to the submission of the counsel for Abure and Farouk, Alex Ejesieme SAN, said when there is no crack on the wall, there would not be the need for an outsider to come in to mend it.

He noted that the plaintiffs were equally right to have instituted the case through originating summons.

On the issue of locus standi of the plaintiffs to bring the matter before the court, the judge held that being members of the LP, they have the locus standi to institute the case.

Following the April 5 ex-parte injunction made by Justice Muazu, stopping Abure, the National Secretary of the party, Alhaji Umar Farouk and two other national officials, Ejesieme had on April 20 argued that the court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

The senior advocate had submitted that the matter before the court bordered on the internal affairs of the Labour Party, adding that criminal allegations made by the plaintiffs in the case, could not be ventilated in an origination summon.

He added that the eight plaintiffs that brought the case before the court were not members of the National Executive Council of the party and as such lacked the locus standi to institute the case.

“Our contention is very clear that those criminal allegations cannot be ventilated in an origination summon. The issue of locus standi is there. When you referred to LP’s constitution, the claimants are not members of NEC or the party. They have a duty to present their membership cards to the court which they didn’t,” the counsel argued.

While objecting to the preliminary objection raised by the counsel for Abure and Farouk, counsel for the plaintiffs, Mr. George Ibrahim, urged the court to dismiss same.

According to him, the first to fourth defendants had yet to obey the April 5 order of the court as they were still parading themselves as national officers of the LP, saying that with the ruling of the court on having jurisdiction to hear the case, its order of April 5 subsists.

The judge adjourned until May 19 to hear the substantive case.

The eight plaintiffs in the case are Martins Esikpali John; Lucky Shaibu; Isah Zekeri; Omogbai Frank; Abokhaiu Aliu; Ayohkaire Lateef; John Elomah and Dr. Ayobami Arabambi.

They had in an ex-parte motion, marked M/7082/2023, sought the removal of Abure and the three other national officers of the party.

They informed the court, through their counsel, Ogwu Onoja SAN, that Abure and the three other national officials allegedly forged several documents of the FCT High Court, including receipts, seal and affidavits, to carry out unlawful substitutions in the last general election.

Onoja argued that following their indictment by police investigation, the four people are to be arraigned in court, adding that the warrants for their arrest had already been obtained.

Reacting to the judgment, Abure faulted the FCT court ruling, insisting that it has jurisdiction to hear the case against him that restrained him from parading himself as the LP national chairman.

Two different courts of coordinate jurisdiction in Edo State and in Abuja gave two conflicting orders on whether the National Chairman of the party, Barr Julius Abure, and some other officials can continue to hold their positions.

While the court in Benin restrained Abure and others from being removed pending the determination of the case, the FCT court stopped Abure and others from parading themselves as national officers of the party.

The FCT court had made the order in Abuja while ruling in an ex-parte application argued by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria SAN, Chief James Ogwu Onoja

Abure, who defied the court ruling, received Civil Society groups and supporters of Labour Party in FCT, who were in solidarity visit to him at the LP national Secretariat.

While addressing his visitors, the embattled Chairman said he would appeal the current ruling by the FCT court, which said it has jurisdiction to hear the case.

He said, “We have obeyed the court restraining order and by today, the court gave a ruling, assuming jurisdiction. I need to make it abundantly clear that the substantive matter has not started. There was a preliminary objection to the jurisdiction of the court and the court today assumed jurisdiction. And for me, I am ready to go for an appeal.

“In the next few hours, we will be submitting our notice of appeal to the court and we will move all the matter from that court and take it to the court of Appeal.”

He expressed the optimism that the LP and himself would get justice in the Court of Appeal because the same court in FCT in 2023, in the case of Sulieman vs APC, did the same thing and the Law Report decided by the Supreme Court made it very clear that the court has no jurisdiction over such matter.

“That is where we are standing and we believe that whatever the court has said today can’t stand before the court of Appeal. I believe that the court of Appeal will do the right thing and therefore all our papers would be filled today and by Monday, the appeal would commence.

“And so, I want to assure all our supporters, all our members that they should remain calm, I remain the National Chairman of the LP. LP is a democratic institution and you don’t use coup d’ tat to grab leadership; you don’t use the back door to take over the leadership of the party. That is what Apapa and co tried to do.

“Though we understand them because they have been paid by their paymasters, if you look at the statement they made today, they are talking about the tribunal. Whatever they say is about the tribunal, and it is no longer news that these disgruntled LP members have been paid to truncate the cases in tribunal. They are only satisfying their paymasters and so we urge all our members to disregard them.

“We all know how to remove the National Chairman, and how a new one can be elected. So, it’s unfortunate that this group of people found themselves in the Labour Party. The time has come for us to separate the wheat from the chaff.”