The Court of Appeal in Abuja has scheduled a firm hearing for today, Friday, in a new lawsuit that seeks to block Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s inauguration as president on May 29.
The court mandated that the lawsuit CA/ABJ/CV/259/2023, which seeks to stop Tinubu from being sworn in as Nigeria’s next president and taking office on May 29, must be heard conclusively by today at 3 p.m.
The Appellate Court heard a joinder motion from Tinubu on May 18 to clear the way for the lawsuit’s hearing, and after hearing arguments from Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, the court issued a swift ruling granting Tinubu’s request and adding him as a third respondent alongside President Muhammadu Buhari and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The court then ordered that Buhari, AGF, INEC, and Tinubu—the first through fourth respondents—should file their Respondents’ Briefs and serve the Appellants by 10 am this morning. Tinubu was immediately added to the lawsuit on the grounds that he had interests that may be harmed.
The Appeal Court also ordered the Appellants to submit their Reply Brief and serve the Respondents by noon today, and it established the hearing time for the case for 3 PM today.
Chief Ambrose Albert Owuru, a contender for president in the 2019 election and a constitutional lawyer, along with his political organization, the Hope Democratic organization (HDP), filed the lawsuit.
Owuru, who was admitted to the Nigerian Bar in 1982, is asking the Court of Appeal in Abuja to forbid President Muhammadu Buhari, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from swearing in the 2023 President-elect on May 29.
The politician, who ran for president in 2019 under the banner of the Hope Democratic Party (HDP), wants Buhari, AGF, and INEC to be restrained from moving on with the 2023 presidential election that Tinubu won.
Owuru, who said that he had been declared the constitutional winner of the 2019 presidential election, justified his objections to the inauguration of Tinubu or anybody else as Buhari’s successor by arguing that the latter had not used his four years in office as required by law.
Owuru stated that President Buhari has been abusing his position since 2019, among other reasons being that the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on his suit from that year in which he contested the alleged announcement of Buhari as the election winner.
He moved to the Court of Appeal to express his resentment after Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja rejected his initial lawsuit on January 30, 2023.
Buhari’s four-year term has not been used as needed by law, according to Owuru, who asserted that he was declared the constitutional winner of the 2019 presidential election. Owuru argued that Tinubu or anybody else should not succeed Buhari because he has not used his four years in office as required by law.
The Supreme Court has not yet ruled on Owuru’s suit from 2019, in which he contested the alleged announcement of Buhari as the election winner, and Owuru argued that Buhari has been usurping his tenure of office since that year.
Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed his initial lawsuit on January 30, 2023, which prompted him to appeal to the Court of Appeal to express his resentment.