The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has thrown out the appeal by defeated Kaduna governorship aspirant, Sani Sha’aban against the victory of Senator Uba Sani at the All Progressives Congress, APC primaries.
Striking out the appeal, the Court held that the appeal having been argued on an incomplete record of appeal was incompetent as reported by the Vanguard newspaper.
Sha’aban had appealed against the judgement of the Federal High Court, Kaduna Division delivered on the 4th November, 2022 which earlier struck out the suit for lack of jurisdiction. Dissatisfied with the judgment, Sha’aban went to the Court of Appeal.
Barrister Sule Shuaibu who was the Counsel to APC confirmed the Abuja court’s verdict in favor of Senator Uba Sani, the governorship flagbearer of the party, by all 3 Justices of the Court of Appeal on Wednesday in Abuja.
Meanwhile, the Kaduna State All Progressives Congress(APC) Campaign Council has praised the decision of the Court of Appeal for striking out the suit of Alhaji Sani Mahmood Sha’aban, challenging the victory of Senator Uba Sani at the primaries.
A statement issued by the Director of Strategic Communication, Malam Ibraheem Musa, described the judgement as a sound verdict grounded in law and fact, adding that it will deepen the electoral process.
‘’The APC family is genuinely happy with the Court of Appeal’s judgement and with this victory, the party is now more focused for the task of winning the 2023 elections at all levels,’’ he said.
‘’The verdict has indeed demonstrated that the judiciary is blind to sentiments and other extraneous considerations. Rather, it is guided by the constitution, electoral act and rules of the court,’’ the statement added.
The Director of Strategic Communication recalled that the Court of Appeal’s verdict on suit CA/k/262/2022 was based on the preliminary objection of the APC legal team, which argued that the Appeal is incompetent because of the failure of Hon Sha’aban to transmit the complete record of Appeal within 10 days after filing the appeal as provided by the law.
The Court of Appeal had earlier on 9/12/2022 refused to grant to application by Hon Sha’aban for extension of time within which to transmit the record of appeal, holding that the position of the law is that in election related litigation, no room for extension of time for litigant who failed to abide by the provision of the law.
The APC counsel also argued that having left the party, Sani Sha’aban lacks the locus standi to continue with the suit.
It will be recalled that Justice Mohammed Garba Umar, of the Federal High Court ruled on November 4, saying that the court lacked the jurisdiction to deliver judgement in the said matter.
The statement commended the legal teams headed by Sunusi Musa SAN for Senator Uba Sani and Suleiman Shuaibu, counsel for the APC, for their steadfastness in defending the mandate of Senator Uba Sani in the courts.
