Understanding the Celebrated Jigawa Judgment on APGA Leadership and The Victor Oye Appeal

By Nduka Edede Chisom

On the 16th of June 2021, Alhaji Rabiu Garba Aliyu, an indigene and resident of Jigawa State approached the Jigawa State High Court and sought relief from the Court to be declared as the Acting National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance. His contention was that he, rather than Chief Jude Okeke was the rightful person to the seat following the suspension of Chief Edozie Njoku by the National Executive Committee of the Party on the 15th June, 2021.

Upon service of the processes, Chief Jude Okeke through his counsel responded to the Suit on the 24th June, 2021. The Independent National Electoral Commission which was sued as the 2nd Respondent also filed their response and the case was argued.

 Justice Musa Ubale before whom the case was filed on 30th June 2021 gave his judgment in the case and found in favour of Chief Jude Okeke as the rightful Chairman of the Party with powers to conduct Governorship primaries of the Party including that of Anambra State which the Plaintiff sought was his right to conduct.

Barely a week later on the 6th July, 2021, Chief P. I. N. Ikwueto, SAN on behalf of Chief Victor Oye and the All Progressives Grand Alliance, (APGA) filed a Notice of Appeal and also a Motion seeking leave of the Court to appeal as an interested person. Also Chief Edozie Njoku, the National Chairman whom the Plaintiff claimed was suspended by the NEC of the Party acting through Chike Onyemenam, SAN also filed his Motion seeking leave to appeal as an interested person on the 22nd July, 2021. The Plaintiff in the Suit filed his own Appeal through Chibuzor Ezike Esq on the 30th June, 2021 the same day the judgment was delivered.

The courts in Nigeria being on their annual vacation and the case being an election related case, the President of the court of Appeal set up a panel of three Justices headed by Hon. Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani. Other members of the Special Appeal Panel are Justice Usman Musale and Justice Abdullahi Ridwan Maiwada.

On the 28th July, 2021 when the matter came up for hearing of the appeal, the Court listed all three Appeals, being the Appeal by the Plaintiff and the two Motions seeking leave of Court to appeal as an interested person.

Chief Wole Olanipekun leading the team for Victor Oye had his matter called up first and he argued his Motion fervently praying the Court to grant the application and allow them to appeal. While moving his motion, he referred to a second further affidavit which he said was filed on the 26th July, 2021 and wherein he exhibited a fresh copy of a Notice of Appeal of fifteen grounds and withdrew the former Notice of Appeal filed on 6th July, 2021 with only four grounds of appeal . Hence, having withdrawn the earlier filed Notice of Appeal and relying on the fresh one, the earlier Notice of Appeal was bound to be struck out. After arguments, the Court adjourned to 30th of July, 2021 for ruling.

The second matter called up was that of Chief Edozie Njoku. However the court to ensure it possessed the jurisdiction to entertain the matter asked counsel in the matter to address it if it had jurisdiction based on the provisions of Section 285(11) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. It went on a recess for an hour for counsel to prepare for the address. The Court resumed and after taking all arguments also adjourned for ruling on the 30th July, 2021.

The Panel then proceeded to hear the Appeal by the Plaintiff and after arguments had been taken adjourned the matter sine die for judgment.

On the 30th July, 2021 in a unanimous decision, the Court of Appeal Panel granted the prayers of Chief Victor Oye and APGA by granting leave for them to Appeal and also gave timelines for filing and exchange of all processes. 

 In the second ruling of the day, the Panel unanimously again held that the case before it was a pre-election matter and by the requirements of the Constitution, the appeal ought to be filed within 14 days . It cited Section 285(11) of the Constitution as being binding on the court. Also relying on the expanded interpretation of Section 285(14) of the 1999 Constitution of the Supreme Court authority in APC v. Umar & Ors (2019) LPELR- 47297  the Court held that the issue in the trial Court though being on the issue of who becomes the chairman of the Party with powers to conduct the primaries of the impending Anambra Governorship election was a pre-election matter and the appeal ought to be filed within 14 days. It then correctly struck out the Motion of Chief Edozie Njoku for being incompetent.

Knowing that courts are bound by their judgments or orders in similar situations, it is very difficult if not impossible to see how the same Panel could hold in the Application of Chief Edozie Njoku that the matter is a pre-election case and then hold otherwise in the Appeal by Victor Oye on the same judgment. It is also from the same point of view that one would ask if it would be possible for the Court to strike out an appeal filed on the 22nd July 2021 for being filed out of time and then allow the one filed on 30th July, 2021 on exactly the same judgment as not being out of time. There can be no justification for that.

In the appeal now filed by Victor Oye he largely contended, though erroneously, on two grounds that the Jigawa State High court lacked the territorial jurisdiction to entertain that the matter if adjudged by the court to be a pre-election matter and also the suit at the High Court was filed outside the 14 days provision since the cause of action arose on 31st May, 2019 when the National Convention of APGA was conducted.

But on a close look, one would find that the contention of parties at the High Court was on the National leadership of the Party which was in contention and wherein the Plaintiff asked for relief that he be declared chairman and not the 1st Defendant and that the court should nullify all actions of the Defendant to conduct the primaries in Anambra and hand over such powers to him. This is the leg of the suit in the High Court that squarely made the matter a pre-election matter as was held in the case of APC V Umar & Ors (Supra). 

Also being an issue which borders on the national leadership of the Party which is an intra-party matter, any High Court of a state has requisite jurisdiction to entertain the matter. APGA being a national Party and having offices in all the States of the Federation and also the second Defendant, INEC having offices in all States of the Federation , the Jigawa State High Court which is in the State of residence of the Plaintiff was correctly clothed with the territorial jurisdiction to determine the matter .

Furthermore, on the argument that assuming without conceding that the matter was a pre-election matter that the matter at the High Court was filed after fourteen days the cause of action arose, the cause of action being the 31st May 2019 National Convention of the Party held in Owerri, it can be said that this argument is a very wrong interpretation or understanding of the contention at the High Court. The contention was the appointment of the 1st Defendant Chief Jude Okeke as Acting National Chairman by the NEC of the Party on the 15th June, 2021 and the suit was filed on 16th June, 2021 and all the responses were filed within time and judgment delivered within the constitutionally provided time for judgment to be delivered in a pre-election matter. *The contention was never about the Convention of the Party held in Owerri as being argued by Oye and his legal team.

So the argument on territorial jurisdiction is baseless and being pursued by emotion and not law especially by those who have read manipulated newspaper reports instead of reading the affidavit to detect the real cause of action* . 

 What was before Jigawa High Court was a suit filed by a party member and indigene of Jigawa challenging the appointment of Jude Okeke as Acting National Chairman of APGA not about Anambra governorship primary or the winner .  Anambra was not the issue here. The issue was about an intra-party dispute brought by a Jigawa indigene who claimed to be an official of APGA and wanted to stop Jude Okeke from being Acting Chairman and Jude Okeke defeated him. Jude Okeke is the victim here not the aggressor. Jude Okeke was dragged to Court in Jigawa, he did not go to Jigawa on his own.

 Therefore, it can be rightly said that the Jigawa State High Court APGA leadership Judgment is a historical pre-election case that complied with rules of territorial jurisdiction while resolving APGA endless crisis and the self-inflicted woes of Victor Oye who filed his appeal outside the 14 days Constitutional time line .

 It still remains inexplicable why the legal team of Chief Victor Oye withdrew their valid Notice of Appeal to rely on an invalid one. That reason we may or may never know.

BARR. NDUKA EDEDE CHISOM is a  Director at the center for Justice,equity  and due process compliance