The Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday dismissed the suit filed by Senator Dino Melaye, representing Kogi West senatorial district in the National Assembly, seeking to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from undertaking the processes of his recall from the National Assembly, following a petition to that effect by his constituency.
The court further held that Melaye’s complaints are ‘hasty, premature and presumptuous” and therefore ordered the INEC to go ahead with its planned verification exercise.
Melaye and the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kogi State Chapter, have among other reliefs prayed the court to declare the petition from his constituents to INEC for the recall as illegal and unconstitutional.
They had also prayed the court for a declaration that the petition forwarded to the INEC was signed by fictitious, dead and none-existing persons that are not from the senatorial district. Delivering judgement on the suit on Monday, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba said there was no merit in most of the complaints brought before the court by Melaye which bordered on “fair hearing”.
The court also held that contrary to the position of Melaye, the constituents who wrote the petition to INEC that sought his recall are neither under any duty to serve him with a copy of the petition nor offer him an opportunity to defend himself. The judge said, “I do not believe that the petitioners have the duty to serve the plaintiff with a copy of the petition.
The duty of the constituents is to write and submit their petition to the electoral body.
“There is no provision in Sections 68 and 69 of the Constitution that provides the scope for the writers of the petition to inform the plaintiff of plans to recall him or for him to come and clear himself of allegations levelled against him.”
Whereas the court observed that in the United States, there is no provision for recall of an elected official, but Justice Dimgba said that, “the makers of our Constitution decided to make “recall option” available with all its inherent dangers”.
The court insisted that unlike in impeachment process, “Fair hearing is not an option in recall process”.
Consequently, the judge held that the only option available for Melaye, is for him to go through the verification process to be conducted by INEC.
The court also ordered INEC to serve Melaye with the copy of the recall petition, schedule of signatures attached to the petition and full list of persons in support of the recall process.
The judge said, “It is important that the plaintiff be equipped with the relevant materials and processes he needs to prepare for the verification exercise.”
On the 90 days time limit set for the recall process, the court held that it was doubtful of the date beginning from June 23, 2017, saying even if it existed, the 90 days paused on July 6, 2017 when the court made an interim order on the suit.
The judge then said, Ordinarily, the 90 days begins today that this pronouncement has been made. Therefore, Justice Dimgba ordered that subject to the service of these documents on Melaye, “the INEC shall proceed with the conduct of the verification of signatories in support of the plaintiff’s recall from the Senate.
In addition, the court held that it is only when the plaintiff notices any infraction, fake signatures or names of dead persons during the verification exercise that he can approach the court to seek redress.
The court had earlier while delivering the judgment dismissed INEC’s preliminary objection to the suit.
INEC had claimed that the amended originating summon dated 7th August, but filed on the 8th, “is incongruous and grossly incompetent having been filed contrary to Order 3 Rule 9 and Order 17 Rules 4, 5 of the Federal High Court Procedure Rules.
Lawyer to INEC told Justice Dimgba that “My Lord, after leave was granted for amendment of the originating summon, the 1st plaintiff (Melaye) filed an affidavit that was completely at variance with order of court without obtaining leave”.
But the court held that the amended originating summon was properly filed in line with Order 3 Rule 9. Similarly, the sister suit filed by the APC seeking the nullification of the recall process was dismissed for being an academic exercise.
Lawyer to the APC, Samuel Ologunorisa, had urged court to grant the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs. Ologunorisa argued that there was no counter affidavit from the defendant, insisting that the affidavit was deposed to by one Alhaji Addy Ametuo, a litigation clerk, who failed to disclose his source of information.
Responding to the judgment on Monday, an INEC National Commissioner, Mr Solomon Soyebi told Channels Television that the commission has immediately reactivated the verification for which it had early in July pasted the notice to begin the recall process against Melaye .
The official recalled that notice of verification was pasted on the walls of the local government area office of INEC in Lokoja , the Kogi State capital, for the electorate to see the progress of the recall initiated by Melaye ’s constituents and it was dated July 10 , 2017 , and signed by INEC Chairman , Prof . Mahmood Yakubu.
The court in its judgment regards INEC actions including its fixture of August 19 for the verification as being paused. Reacting to the judgment, Senator Dino Melaye urged the constituents of Kogi West Senatorial district to remain calm “in the face of obvious persecution and appealable judgement of the Federal High Court,Abuja.”
Speaking in a statement made available on Monday, Melaye said, ” Let not your heart be troubled. Lies will never overtake or conquer truth.
The presence of the Kogi State Attorney -General and Commissioner for Justice in court today over a matter that Kogi State is not joined as a party shows the clear collaborative efforts of INEC and Kogi State Government”.
These combined efforts of Governor Yahaya Bello, INEC,top Federal Govt Officials and top Security agents to harangue and stampede me out of the Senate against the will of Kogi West constituents will fail woefully.”
“He who is with me from above is greater than all of them put together.I will not stop speaking truth to authority.
Kogi State Govt must pay workers salaries and pay Pensioners. We can not all sleep facing one side of the bed. We shall overcome this temporary shenanigans in the long run. We will neither sleep nor slumber on this.”
