The Supreme Court has given a judicial seal of approval for the inauguration of President elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President elect Kashim Shettima with dismissal of a suit by the People’s Democratic Party PDP, seeking their disqualification from the 2023 presidential election.
Despite the clearing of legal impediment at the apex court, the Federal High Court, Abuja Division is currently entertaining another suit brought before it, seeking to stall the said inauguration fixed for May 29, 2023.
Not leaving anything to chance, the legal team of the President elect led by Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) split itself in two to enable it representation at the apex court and the Federal High Court.
Specifically, the team lead, Prince Fagbemi (SAN) is at the Federal High Court, where he is canvassing legal arguments to ensure that the inauguration of his client is not stalled by the court, while some of his juniors including Barr. Omosanya Popoola are at the apex court to take the judgement.
Delivering its judgement on Friday, the apex court held that the PDP’S Suit praying disqualification of Tinubu and Shetima on ground of alleged double nomination by Shetima was grossly lacking in merit and dismissed it.
Justice Adamu Jauro who delivered the lead judgment slammed a fine of N2M on PDP for poke nosing into the internal affairs of the All Progressives Congress in the conduct of its primary elections and nomination of its candidates.
Justice agreed with Tinubu’s lawyer, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN that PDP acted as busy body and meddlesome interloper in the ways and manners it dabbled into APC’S affairs unjustly.
The Apex Court held that apart from the fact that PDP lacked requisite jurisdiction to institute the suit, the party also failed to provide scintilla of evidence that Shetima engaged in double nomination.
The claim of PDP’ on the alleged double nomination of the Vice President-elect was described as most unfortunate and a clear deliberate mischief to mislead the Court and the country.
The Supreme Court also agreed with lawyer Fagbemi SAN that no matter the pains of PDP on how APC conducted it’s primary election and nominated its candidates, PDP must remain onlooker.
“It is abundantly clear that the Appellant (PDP) in the totality of its position in the instant case, is peeping and poke nosing into the affairs of another party as a busy body and meddlesome interloper”
The Court held that the action of PDP was painful because it used the social media to set a booby trap for the Supreme Court to blackmail it. This is most unfortunate, unwarranted and uncalled for.
Details later.