A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by five residents of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, who sought to stop the inauguration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President.
The presiding judge, Justice Inyang Ekwo, on Tuesday, ordered the lawyer representing the five residents to pay the sum of N10 million each to the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN.
Ekwo held that the plaintiffs have no locus standi to file the suit, insisting that the suit can only be filed at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal and not the Federal High Court.
The plaintiffs had averred that Tinubu failed to secure at least 25 per cent of votes cast in the FCT.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/578/2023, was filed on April 28.
The plaintiffs – Anyaegbunam Okoye, David Adzer, Jeffrey Ucheh Osang Paul and Chibuike Nwanchukwu – had sued for themselves and on behalf of other residents and registered voters in the FCT, asking the court to determine “whether or not the person who is to be elected President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and consequently administrator of the FCT through the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and the Federal Capital Territory Development Authority, on the first ballot is required by section 134(2)(b) of the Constitution to obtain at least 25 per cent of the votes cast in the FCT.”
The plaintiffs also wanted a declaration extending the tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari, while also asking for the setting aside of the Certificate of Return, CoR, issued to Tinubu by the Independent Natıonal Electoral Commission, INEC, and restrain the Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, and any other judicial officer from swearing him in.
