Justice Binta Nyako, who declined to stop the Balogun faction said, the principle of the fair hearing will be breached since only one person instituted the court action.
Delivering ruling in an ex-parte motion filed by an aggrieved contestant on May 12, 2018, Lagos APC Congress, Bunmi Tayo Church, Justice Nyako said, it will be unfair to stop the Balogun faction in view of the limited time to the convention slated for June 23, 2018, in Abuja.
In declining to grant the ex-parte motion, the Judge held that the plaintiff was just one out of 1, 885 aspirants who vied for various positions during the Congress.
Justice Nyako said that the plaintiff did not help himself in his claim that he was prevented from participating in the state congress, adding that, it is a law that anyone who did not participate in an election cannot challenge the outcome of that election.
The court held that Church, having not participated on May 12, 2018, Lagos state APC congress, cannot use the ex-parte application to challenge the outcome of the Congress.
Besides, Justice Nyako said that hundreds of others who participated in the Congress will be denied a fair hearing if the application is granted because they were not brought before the court by the applicant (Church), who instituted the court action in his personal capacity.
“This application has failed as all the parties who will be affected by the decision of the Court are not before it”, Justice Nyako stated and dismissed the application, which among other relief sought an order of the court restraining the National Headquarters of the APC and INEC from giving recognition to the Balogun led Exco of the party in Lagos.
Justice Nyako ordered that the Originating Summons filed by the plaintiff/applicant, through his counsel, Chief Akin Olujimi (SAN) will be given an accelerated hearing.
However, Justice Babatunde Quadri, who read the ruling on behalf of Justice Nyako, who was said to have been bereaved, however, did not give a definite date for the hearing of the Originating Summons and added that Justice Nyako will fix a convenient date for the hearing of the matter.
Church had, in his affidavit supporting the main suit, claimed to be interested in contesting for the party’s chairmanship in Mushin Local Government Area and that he would have realised his ambition and become a delegate but for the unlawful way, the congresses were conducted.
He contended that the congresses conducted in Lagos were in violation of the party’s constitution, its guidelines for the conduct of ward, local government and state congresses and the Constitution of Nigeria (as amended).
Reacting to the ruling, Balogun said he, along with other members of his executive were duly elected at the Lagos APC congress, conducted by an election committee constituted by the National Headquarters of the party in Abuja.
According to him, the election committee for the Lagos APC congress was headed by Senator Uche Ekwunife and that INEC monitored the Congress.
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