68 lawsuits brought in Abuja against the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Labour Party will now be transferred to the Lagos Division of the Federal High Court, where the original cause of action originated, according to Justice John Tsoho, Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.
According to the terms of Rule 4(8)(i) of the Federal High Court (pre-election) Practice Directions 2022, cases were transferred from the Abuja Division of the Court to Lagos.
“All suits wherein the cause of action arose in a judicial division and the relief seeks a declaration or to compel or restrain a person(s), natural or legal, within that judicial division, with no consequence outside it, shall be filed, received, or heard only within that judicial division,” according to the rule.
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As a result, Justice Tsoho mandated that the 68 lawsuits be moved to the court’s Lagos Division.
The plaintiffs in the several lawsuits brought by the legal team of Bola Aidi and Co. complained that INEC had left their names off the final list of candidates for the LP in the Lagos state House of Assembly and National Assembly elections in 2023.
The main argument made by the plaintiffs is that their names as candidates for the LP in the senatorial, house of representatives, and state house of assembly elections in Lagos state were left off the final list of candidates published by INEC on September 20, 2022.
Abiodun Dabiri claimed in his lawsuit, FHC/ABJ/CS/1811/2022, that Section 32(1) of the Electoral Act of 2022 is violated by INEC’s reluctance or failure to publish his name, even though he was duly nominated as a candidate for the Labour Party.
He sought the court to intervene and order INEC to recognize and publish his name as the Labour Party candidate for the Lagos Central Senatorial District of Lagos State since the court has the authority to do so.
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Peter Nnadi filed a lawsuit with the case number FHC/ABJ/CS/1788/22 asking the court to rule that INEC’s decision not to include his name in the final list released in September was incorrect and illegal given that he won the primary held on May 27 for the Oshodi 1 Federal Constituency of Lagos State and that the primary was properly monitored by the electoral body.
According to Sections 29(1) and (3), 33, and 84(1) of the Electoral Act of 2022, INEC cannot accept any name sent to it other than his name, as the nominated House of Assembly candidate of the LP for Mainland 2 Constituency of Lagos, having already recognized and published his name, having won the first and lawfully racial election. On the other hand, one of the plaintiffs, Shodimu Olufemi, sets out seven questions for the determination of the court.
All of the plaintiffs argued in their initial summons that the INEC-conducted and -monitored primaries had legitimately elected them, and that the electoral body could not have left their names off of the list of candidates for the LP because they were neither deceased nor had withdrawn their candidacy as required by the Electoral Act.
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As a result, they requested from the court that INEC recognize and publish their names as candidates for the LP in the senatorial, house of representatives, and state house of assembly elections in Lagos state.
Having won the primary elections to run for office, they also want the court to issue an order ordering the Labour Party to notify INEC of the removal of their names in the final list of candidates released on September 20.
According to the Chief Judge of the court’s instructions, the Federal High Court’s Lagos Division would now hear the cases, which are of a pre-election character.
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