Godwin Tsa, Abuja
The Abuja division of the Federal High Court has dismissed a suit seeking to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from concluding and collating the results of the March 9 governorship and House of Assembly Elections in Rivers State.
Justice Inyang Ekwo dismissed the suit filed by the African Action Congress and three of its members for lack of jurisdiction.
The judge upheld the preliminary objection filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to challenge the jurisdiction of the court to hear the case.
The court held that the subject matter of the suit, being a post-election case, meant that the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to adjudicate on it.
Justice Ekwo said the proper place to adjudicate on the matter is the election petition turbinal.
Ekwo described the suit as an attempt by the plaintiffs to make the court constitute itself into an election petition tribunal.
The plaintiffs, who filed the suit marked FHC/ ABJ/CS/303/2019, were AAC, its governorship candidate in Rivers State, Biokpomabo Awara, and Ben-Gurion John Peter.