By Vivian Okejeme Abuja
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of a Federal High Court, Abuja, yesterday, consolidated two suits seeking to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from commencing process to recall Senator Dino Melaye.
Th e judge merged the two suits following an application by the All Progressives Congress (APC). Th e party, through its lawyer, Mr. Olatunji Atoyebi, applied for a pending suit it fi led to challenge the planned recall, to be consolidated with the one marked FHC/ABJ/CS/567/2017, which Melaye personally lodged before the High Court. Arguing his application, the party based its request on the fact that the two suits are seeking similar reliefs.
Responding to the application, INEC lawyer, Mr. Sulayman Ibrahim, and Melaye’s lawyer, Mr. Nkem Okoro, did not oppose the request. Consequently, Justice Dimgba granted the consolidation request. Similarly, the court also joined three persons- Chief Olowo Cornelius John Anjorin and Malam Yusuf Adamu, who identifi ed themselves as Melaye’s constituents and authors of the petition before INEC, as codefendants in the consolidated suit.
He dismissed Melaye’s contention that the applicants did not exhibit their voters card to prove that they were indeed electorates from Kogi West. Also yesterday, the court allowed fi ve persons, Afolabi Lydia Olufunke, Mrs. Iyabose Owolabi, Sanya Grace Folake, Salihu Abubakar Abdullahi and Michael Olowolaiyemo, who identifi ed themselves as registered voters from Kogi West, to join the case as co-plaintiff s with Melaye and the APC.
Th e court also granted Melaye permission to amend his Originating Summons. Melaye had, in his suit, prayed the court to declare that the petition his constituents presented to INEC for his recall was illegal, unlawful, wrongful, unconstitutional, invalid, null and void and of no eff ect in law. S
imilarly, the APC, in its own suit, asked the court to declare that the recall process initiated vide a purported petition against their sponsored member of the Senate by some of his constituents, pursuant to Section 69 of the 1999 Constitution, “is illegal, unlawful and of no eff ect whatsoever for being contrary and in contravention to the rules of natural justice and constitutionally guaranteed right to fair hearing under section 36 of the 1999 Constitution.” Th e matter has been adjourned till Friday for hearing
