CaseLaw
Nyesom Vs. Peterside & Ors. (2015) CLR 10 (g) (SC)
Judgement delivered on October 27th 2015
Brief
Facts
This is an appeal against the judgement of Court of Appeal, Abuja Division which dismissed the appeal filed before it by the present appellant and affirmed the decision of Rivers State Governorship Election Tribunal sitting in Abuja. The facts which gave rise to this appeal, as could be gathered from the Record of Appeal, can be summarised as follows:
The appellant herein, contested election into the office of Governor of Rivers State held on 11th and 12th of April, 2015 having been sponsored by his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which is the 4th Respondent in this appeal. The 1st Respondent herein, also contested election for the same office on the platform of his party, the All Progressive Congress (APC) which is the 2nd Respondent in this appeal. After the election, the 3rd Respondent, INEC, which is the statutory body saddled with the responsibility of conducting the same election in Rivers State and in some states in Nigeria, returned and declared the appellant winner of the election, having scored the highest number of votes cast at the said election over and above the scores of the other contestants. Aggrieved by the declaration of result and return of the appellant as winner of the election, the first and second respondents herein, jointly filed an election petition on 3rd May 2015 at the Rivers State Governorship Election Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as "the tribunal") sitting in Abuja, praying for the nullification of the election and urged it to order the conduct of fresh election into the said office.
On being served with the petitioners' petition (1st and 2nd Respondents), the appellant, as 2nd Respondent at the tribunal, filed a Notice of Preliminary Objection on 4th June 2015 challenging the competence of the tribunal and its jurisdiction to entertain same and at the same time, he filed his Reply to the petitioners' petition.
The preliminary objection filed by the appellant was premised on six grounds which are listed hereunder:-
Again, the appellant on 30th June 2015 filed a motion on notice wherein, he formally raised the above listed six grounds in his preliminary objection in the said motion wherein he prayed the Tribunal to strike out the petition for want of jurisdiction or in the alternative, to dismiss the same for being incompetent, The first and second respondents, as petitioners at the Tribunal, upon being served with the Preliminary objection, and later with the motion on notice, filed a joint counter affidavit and written address on 7th July 2015. And also, on being served with the latter’s' processes, the appellant filed a Further Affidavit and Reply Address on 11/7/2015.
On 22-7-2015, the Tribunal took arguments of learned senior counsel to the parties on the Preliminary Objection and the motion and later on 29th July 2015, it delivered its considered ruling in which it held, inter-alia, that it (Tribunal) was properly constituted by the Hon. President of Court of Appeal even without her having consultation with the Chief Judge of Rivers State or the President of Customary Court of Appeal of Rivers State. It further held that it had jurisdiction to sit, hear and determine the election petition relating to Rivers State governorship election in Abuja.
The Appellant became disenchanted with the ruling of the Tribunal, hence he decided to appeal to the Court of Appeal (the lower court or "court below") vide a Notice of Appeal dated 1st August 2015 containing eleven (11) grounds of appeal. Briefs of argument were filed and exchanged by parties' learned counsel at the lower court in accordance with the rules and practice of that court. The Appellant filed his brief on 14-8-2015 while the 1st and 2nd Respondents upon being served with the appellant's brief, also filed their Joint Brief of argument on 18th August 2015. It is worthy of note, that in their Joint Brief of Argument filed at the lower court, the 1st and 2nd Respondents herein also argued a Preliminary Objection to the hearing of the appeal. Upon being served with the 1st and 2nd Respondents' joint brief of argument containing the Preliminary Objection, the Appellant decided to file an Appellant's Reply Brief on 24th August 2015.
On 24-8-2015, the learned Justices of the Court of Appeal heard the appeal and the Preliminary Objection argued in the two respondents joint brief together and later on Saturday the 5th day of September 2015, delivered their considered judgement dismissing the Preliminary Objection of the 1st and 2nd Respondents. With regard to the appeal before it, the lower court allowed it in part, to the extent that the requirement by Section 285 (2) and Paragraph 3 of Sixth Schedule to the 1999 Constitution (as mended), for consultation with the Chief Judge or President of Customary Court of Appeal by the Honourable President of the Court of Appeal before appointing chairman and members of the Tribunal to hear and determine governorship election could be waived and/or dispensed with where the two functionaries were absent or inexistent. It also held that the Governorship Election Tribunal of Rivers State was validly constituted even without such consultation and that it was entitled to sit in Abuja outside the territorial enclave of Rivers State to exercise its function. To further buttress its stance on this, the lower court also stated thus:
Piqued by the decision of the lower court, the appellant appealed to this court.
Issues
Whether upon a proper interpretation of the provisions of Section 285(2) of the...