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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Following Supreme Court verdict on the governorship elections in Kano, Plateau and Zamfara States, the Coalition for United Political Parties (CUPP) has called on the National Assembly to amend the constitution.
Recall that the appeal court declared the election in Zamfara State inconclusive while it sacked the Kano State Governor after the ballot papers that were not signed, stamped, and dated were deducted from his votes. In Plateau, the court sacked the governor and all lawmakers elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) because the party failed to obey court order directing it to conduct a fresh congress.
The justices of the apex court upturned these judgements, describing them as perverse.
Specifically, while delivering judgement in the Plateau appeal, Justice Emmanuel Agim urged the court to brace up to remain relevant in society.
“The petition by the APC and its candidates is an abuse of court process. I wonder why the matter came to court at all. This appeal is allowed. The legal profession should wake up or render itself irrelevant. The judgment of the court of appeal is set aside,” he said.
In addition, Justice John Okoro, who was also on the panel, expressed concern for those who have suffered a miscarriage of justice at the lower court.
He said: “My only worry is that a lot of people have suffered as a result of the Court of Appeal’s decision. It was wrong. The appeal is allowed.”
Other justices on the panel took turn to fault the decision of the appellate court.
In its reaction, CUPP in a statementmade available to newsmen on Sunday by its National Secretary, Peter Ameh, called for the amendment of the Constitution to allow all National Assembly appeals to terminate at the apex court.
“CUPP hereby calls on the National Assembly to commence without delay the amendment of Sections 233. (1)(e) and 246. (1)(3) of the 1999 Constitution as Amended to extend appellate jurisdiction for State and National Assembly election disputes to the Supreme Court to avert a repeat of the disaster of injustices meted to the validly elected National and State Assembly Members of PDP and Labour Party extraction from Plateau, Enugu, Abia, and other states.
“This call has become necessary due to the irreparable damage caused to the elected members who have been unjustly removed from their legitimate seats by the Court of Appeal despite the plethora of earlier decided and settled cases by the Supreme Court court, which by the doctrine of stare decisis binds the Court of Appea,” he said.