Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has filed a suit at the Court of Appeal to challenge the judgment of an Ado-Ekiti High Court which ordered the reinstatement of members of the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) appointed by the ousted administration.
The Governor and the state Attorney General who are the 1st and 2nd Appellants in the appeal filed at the Ado-Ekiti Division of the Court of Appeal maintained that the judgment delivered on June 14 by Justice John Adeyeye is against the weight of evidence before him.
The Respondents in the Appeal are retired Maj.-Gen. Kayode Oni (1st), Mrs. Tola Ajayi (2nd), Mr. Tayo Awopetu (3rd), Mr. Sesan Akinola (4th) and Mr. Babatunde Odutola (5th) who are members of SIEC dissolved by Governor Fayemi in October 2010.
According to court papers made available to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday, the Appellants in the suit filed by their counsel who is also the state Attorney General, Mr. Dayo Akinlaja, are seeking three reliefs from the court.
The Appellants in the suit marked CA/AE/2012 are praying the court that their appeal be allowed and that the judgment of the lower court be set aside in its entirety.
They are also seeking an order upholding their objection before the lower court and/or the dismissal of the case of the Respondents for lacking merit.
The appeal is predicated on three grounds with the Appellants maintaining that the trial judge erred in law in assuming jurisdiction when Section 254 (C) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) has taken away its jurisdiction.
The Appellants under the ground number two averred that the learned trial judge erred in law in assuming jurisdiction when the Respondents’ case disclosed no cause of action.
They claimed that the lower court should have declined jurisdiction in the matter brought before it by the sacked SIEC members since they (Appellants) challenged the competency of the matter.
The Appellants also notified the Appeal Court of their intent to file additional grounds of appeal upon receipt of the record of appeal.
The Appellants pointed out that the Respondents were appointed as chairman and members of SIEC by the deposed Segun Oni-led administration.
The appeal noted that Fayemi upon assumption of office determined their appointments and relieved the Respondents of their posts after which their salaries and emoluments were stopped.
The Appellants argued that the lower court having been caught with the provisions of Section 254 (C) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria lacked the constitutional competence to entertain the suit filed by the Respondents.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the appeal.
Last modified: June 17, 2012