PDP Chief Takes Jonathan Eligibility Suit To Supreme Court, Apex Court To Hear Suit December 16

The Supreme Court on Monday fixed December 16 for hearing of an   appeal which arose from a suit challenging the eligibility of President Goodluck Jonathan and his vice, Namadi Sambo, to seek re-election in 2015.

The appeal before the Supreme Court was filed by a Peoples Democratic Party chief in Adamawa State, Dr. Umar Ardo, whose application to join the suit as a co-appellant at the Court of Appeal was dismissed.

Ardo, who said he was a presidential aspirant on the platform of the party, was appealing against the ruling of the Court of Appeal, which dismissed his application through which he had sought to be joined as a party.

The main appeal in the substantive suit filed by Cyriacus Njoku, is still pending before the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

The apex court in fixing date for the hearing of Ardo’s appeal considered the fact that nomination of candidates by political parties would close on December 18.

Njoku had approached a Federal Capital Territory High Court in 2012 to stop Jonathan from re-contesting in 2015.

In his judgment, Justice Mudashiru Oniyangi, on March 1, 2014, dismissed the suit for lack of jurisdiction.

Njoku had appealed against the decision of Justice Oniyangi at the Court of Appeal.

It was at the Court of Appeal that Ardo sought to be joined as co-appellant but was refused.

The court stopped Ardo from joining in the appeal on the ground that he was not a party at the lower court.

Ardo through his counsel, Dr. Amuda Kannike (SAN), is praying the Supreme Court to among others, make an order granting him leave to appeal against the judgement of the FCT High Court in suit marked: FCT/HC/CV/244/12 on March 1, 2014.

The respondents in the suit are President Jonathan, the PDP, the Independent National Electoral Commission and Cyriacus Njoku.

The presiding justice, Justice Tanko Mohammed, later adjourned till December 16 for hearing.