A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by the special adviser to the president on political matters Babafemi Ojudu, seeking the dissolution of the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership in Ekiti.
Ruling on Thursday, Justice Inyang Ekwo dismissed the suit filed on April 21 on the grounds that it violated Section 285 of the 1999 Constitution as it was statute-barred.
The judge further held that Ojudu and his faction in the APC leadership tussle failed to institute their case within 14 days as stipulated by law.
“The duty of the court is to interpret the words contained in the statute and not to go outside the clear words in searching for an interpretation which is convenient to the court or to the parties,” the judge said.
“In the instant case, this matter is constitutionally spent when final decision could not be decided. The hands of this court are tied by section 285 of the Constitution.”
Ojudu had dragged the APC, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Inspector of Police (IGP), Paul Omotosho and other executive members of the party in Ekiti to court praying for an order nullifying the election of the leadership.
The contention of Ojudu and other plaintiffs was that the Omotosho-led executive members were “illegally, fraudulently and unconstitutionally” selected on September 15, 2018, at a stakeholders meeting.
