Former President of Igbo think tank group, Aka Ikenga, Chief Goddy Uwazurike, on Thursday, said the Court of Appeal was on firm ground when it declared that the Federal High Court (FHC) Umuahia, lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, on Wednesday, set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court in Umuahia, which voided the provision of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.
Reacting to the Court of Appeal ruling, Uwazurike said: “The major reason is that the plaintiff had no locus standi to file the suit. It’s important to point out that a few days before the Umuahia case was filed, one man had gone to the Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan with the same prayers.
“The presiding judge, Justice Agomoh struck out the suit on the ground of lack of locus standi. Locus standi actually means, what are you standing on or what concerns you personally. In a claim in any court, a litigant states how it affects him. So, the Court of Appeal is on solid ground in this regard.
“Now, the next issue is the opinion of the court on the constitutional position of section 84(12) of the Electoral Act. The Supreme Court has stated that the Court is expected to give an opinion on the issues before the court. This is because the matter can be resolved completely by the Supreme Court.
“But the judgment of the court today is that the Federal High Court sitting in Umuahia had no jurisdiction over the case. So the Electoral Act as signed into law by Mr President is the law today.”