News

Court Rejects Suit Challenging Appointment Of 12 Judges Court

Published

1 year ago

March 15, 2024

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Friday, threw out a suit challenging the appointment of 12 judges for the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a judgment on Friday, held that the plaintiff, Azubuike Oko, who claimed to be a lawyer from Ebonyi, lacked the legal right to institute the matter.

Justice Ekwo also upheld the objection raised by Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, counsel for the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola; the National Judicial Council (NJC) and the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court, Hussein Baba-Yusuf.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Oko had, in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/205/2024, challenged the non-inclusion of lawyers from his state among the newly appointed judges of the High Court of the FCT.

He alleged that Ebonyi had been routinely excluded and marginalised with respect to the appointment of judges of the court by Baba-Yusuf, NJC and the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).

Oko claimed that it was the FCT chief judge who computed the names of qualified lawyers from selected states, which he sent to the FJSC for recommendation to NJC for appointment by the President of Nigeria as judges of the court.

He said the states from which the new appointment was made are Bauchi, Bayelsa, Enugu, Imo, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Taraba, and Zamfara.

He alleged that currently, Oyo and Kogi “already had two serving judges in the FCT High Court, and the two states were given additional slots, to now have three judges, despite the fact that Ebonyi State has no single serving judge in the High Court of the FCT.”

Justice Ekwo, in the judgment on Friday held that the plaintiff was not saying that he had personal injury caused by the CJN, NJC and the Chief Judge of the FCT

or any other defendant in the case for which he sought remedy.

He said that “the plaintiff only claimed that he is from Ebonyi, which had been routinely excluded and marginalised with respect to the appointment of judges of the High Court of FCT by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants (the CJN, NJC and the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).

“What the plaintiff needed to establish to demonstrate his locus standi is how the appointment being considered by the defendants has affected him as a person.

“This, he would have done, by showing that he applied to be considered by the defendants for appointment but he was ‘routinely excluded and marginalized.’

“On the other hand, he would have established that he is acting for any person or persons from Ebonyi State, who are qualified to be appointed and who have indeed applied to be considered for the said appointment, but had been ‘routinely marginalised.’

“In other words, there is no averment that the plaintiff ever applied to be considered for the appointment in issue.

“Without this, I find that that plaintiff has failed to establish his locus standi to initiate this action.”

The judge equally faulted Oko’s attempt to rely on his being from Ebonyi to establish his locus standi to institute the suit.

“The fact that the plaintiff is from Ebonyi State does not still avail him the locus to initiate this case because, in his view, Ebonyi State of Nigeria has been routinely excluded and marginalised with respect to the appointment of judges of the High Court of FCT by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants.

“Ebonyi State, for whose cause the plaintiff claims to undertake, is a legal entity established by the constitution with requisite corporate characteristics, including the capacity to sue and be sued for any wrong done to it by any person.

“Assuming that the plaintiff can sue on behalf of Ebonyi State of Nigeria, which according to him, has been routinely excluded and marginalised with respect to the appointment of judges of the High Court of FCT by the 1st, 2nd and 3rd defendants, the averment that would have established his locus beyond any conjecture would be that the case is in a representative capacity and that he has the consent and authority of Ebonyi State of Nigeria to file thes case.

“It must be understood, at this point, that public interest litigation does not extend to suit purportedly filed on behalf of any person who has the capacity and wherewithal to seek remedy for any wrong done to his/her person, but does not deem it necessary to do so.

“I find that Ebonyi State has the requisite capacity to seek remedy for any wrong done to it.

“By this reason, the plaintiff is obviously meddling in the affairs of 1st, 2nd and 4th defendants by taking up a cause of a state, who has not authorised him to do so.

“It is the law that the court in ascertaining whether the plaintiff in an action has locus standi, pleadings, that is, the statement of caim, or the affidavit in support of the originating process, must disclose a cause of action vested in the plaintiff and the rights and obligations or interests of the plaintiff which have been violated;

“Now, as the law is, where a plaintiff has been adjudged to lack locus stand, it does not matter whether that action is premature, speculative and academic, or discloses no reasonable cause of action against the defendant, or the originating process is defective and incompetent, or suit is not justiciable, or the suit is abuse of court process.

“Lack of focus stand ordinarily means the plaintiff has no legal right or authority to cross the threshold of the court for the matter at hand.

“Once the court finds that the plaintiff lacks focus stand, then the case ends there.

“The court ceases to have jurisdiction to consider or decide any other issue in the suit and this is the case here.

“It is the law that the claims must be struck out and I am bound to follow the law.

” I therefore make an order striking out this action for lack of locus standi of the applicant,” Justice Ekwo declared.

News

Benue Killings: I Expect Arrests, Tinubu Directs Security Chiefs

Published

11 hours ago

June 18, 2025

Editor

President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday directed the security chief to arrest perpetrators of last Friday’s massacre in Yelewata community in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State.

“Christopher… We need to get our ears to the ground. Let’s get those criminals. Let’s get them out,” Tinubu told the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, during a town hall meeting with political leaders in Benue State.

Tinubu is visiting Benue, a hotbed of recent killings by armed herdsmen that claimed at least 100 lives.

Speaking to the Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, he said, “Your political enemies don’t want you to succeed…Are you just realising that?”

He called on leaders from across the region to work together.

“We cannot do without another. I will want us to create a leadership committee now to meet in Abuja to fashion out a strategy for lasting peace. And I am ready to invest in that peace,” he said.

Tinubu earlier visited persons recovering from last Friday’s attack by armed herders at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital.

He was received by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, and the host Governor, Hyacinth Alia.

The attack claimed over 100 lives.

News

17 Million Nigerians Traveled Abroad In 2023 – NANTA

Published

11 hours ago

June 18, 2025

Editor

The National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies said over 17 million Nigerians travelled out between 2023 and 2024.

This is as the association announced that it would be organising a maiden edition of Eastern Travel Market 2025 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital from 27th to 30th August, 2025.

Vice Chairman of NANTA, Eastern Zone, Hope Ehiogie, disclosed this during a news briefing in Port Harcourt.

Ehiogie explained that the event aims to bring together over 1,000 travel professionals to discuss the future of the industry in the nation and give visibility to airlines, hospitality firms, hospitals and institutions in the South-South and South-East, tagged Eastern Zone.

He stated that the 17 million number marks a significant increase in overseas travel and tours.

According to him, “Nigerian travel industry has seen significant growth, with 17 million people traveling out of the country in 2023”.

Ehiogie further said the potential of tourism and travel would bring in over $12 million into the nation’s economy by 2026, saying it would be a major spike in the sector, as 2024 recorded about $4 million.

“The potential of tourism and travel is that it can generate about $12 million for the nation’s economy by 2026. Last year it was $4 million.

“In the area of travels, over 17 million Nigerians traveled out of the country two years ago for different purposes. This included,health, religious purposes, visit, education and others,” Ehiogie said.

While highlighting the potential of Nigeria’s tourism, he said the hospitality industry in Nigeria has come of age, saying it is now second to none.

The Vice Chairman of NANTA, Eastern Zone further said, “We are not creating an enabling environment for business to thrive. We need to support the industry and provide the necessary infrastructure for growth.”

He said the country has a lot of tourism potential, especially as the government is now showing interest in and supporting the sector.

Ehiogie emphasizes that NANTA has been working to support the industry with initiatives such as training schools and platforms for airlines and hotels to sell their products.

He added, “We now have about four to five training schools in the region, and within two years, the first set of students will graduate. We are helping airlines sell tickets and hotels sell their rooms.”

Also speaking, Stephen Isokariari of Dial Travels, former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of NANTA, called for more support from the industry.

Isokariari stated, “We need to work together to grow the industry and contribute to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product.

“With the right support and infrastructure, the Nigerian travel industry has the potential to make a significant contribution to the nation’s economy.”

News

Why Aburi Accord Collapsed – Gowon

Published

15 hours ago

June 18, 2025

Editor

A former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, has said that a key reason for the collapse of the Aburi Accord, the last major attempt to prevent Nigeria’s civil war, was a fundamental disagreement with Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu over who should control military forces in the country’s regions.

Speaking in an interview on Arise TV on Wednesday, Gowon explained that although both parties engaged in sincere dialogue during the January 1967 summit in Aburi, Ghana, the eastern region leader, Ojukwu, later pushed for a form of regional autonomy that the federal side could not accept.

Gowon said, “Although we said that the military would be zoned, you know, but the control… he wanted, you know, those zones to be commanded by the governor. Say you have a military zone in the north, it would be commanded by the governor of the military in the east, it would be commanded by, you know, by him.

“And, of course, we did not agree with that one”, Gowon said.

He further explained that the Federal delegation never viewed the Aburi meeting as a forum for constitutional restructuring or military devolution.

“We just went there as far as we are concerned to be able to meet as officers now, and then to agree to be able to get back home and resolve a problem at home. That was my understanding. But that is not his understanding”, he added.

Gowon also revealed that upon returning to Nigeria after the summit, he was ill and unable to immediately respond to the terms Ojukwu had publicly announced. This delay, he said, created space for misunderstanding and unilateral declarations.

“Unfortunately… I was having a serious attack of a kind of fever or whatever it is, and I could not make a decision”, the former Head of State said.

He accused Ojukwu of making unauthorised statements about the Accord without waiting for joint clarification.

“Ojukwu was one who, when he came, he went and made… a statement about the Aburi Accord”, Gowon said.

To address the confusion, Gowon said the federal government convened a follow-up meeting in Benin, inviting all regional governors to agree on the path forward — but Ojukwu declined to attend.

“We had to organise that, you know, a meeting of all the governors. And he was invited to attend so that we can deal with the Accord. And we met at Nifo in Benin. And he did not turn up”, he said.

Gowon insisted that had Ojukwu attended the Benin meeting, the parties might have been able to avoid escalation.

Gowon said the government was willing to work in the “spirit of Aburi,” but would never concede national military control to regional governors, nor accept the possibility of secession.

“The only thing that I added was that no region, you know, will, you know, can secede from the country.”

The collapse of the Aburi Accord is widely regarded as a decisive moment that led to the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War in July 1967, a conflict that lasted until 1970 and claimed over a million lives.

Gowon’s remarks shed new light on the irreconcilable differences between both sides and reveal that the push for regional military control, rather than just political autonomy, was a red line for the federal government.