BEVERLY HILLS, April 16, (THEWILL) – The Supreme Court has declared Frank Ibezim of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the Senator-Elect arising from the Imo North Senatorial District bye-election.
Friday’s ruling by the apex court finally puts to rest the lingering legal fireworks on the rancorous matter.
In arriving at its decision, the apex court, in a unanimous judgement, voided, nullified and set aside the concurrent judgements of the Federal High Court in Abuja and that of the Court of Appeal, which nullified the candidacy of Ibezim on the ground of perjury.
Justice Emmanuel Agim, who delivered the judgement, held that the suit that led to the disqualification of Ibezim for allegedly supplying false information to secure nomination, was statute barred at the time it was instituted.
Agim said in the judgement that the suit was not filed within 14 days when the cause of action arose.
Specifically, the apex court held that Section 285 of the 1999 Constitution was grossly violated by the Plaintiff in the suit because the mandatory 14 days for such suit to be filed was not complied with.
Besides, the apex court held that the disqualification of Ibezim based on a statute-barred suit, was a nullity because the burden of proof for false information allegations was not proved as required by law.
Agim, while setting aside the judgements of both the Federal High Court and that of the Court of Appeal, held that the appeal by Ibezim against the two judgements was meritorious, enforceable and granted it.
The Supreme Court subsequently declared Ibezim as candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the December 5, 2020 bye-election and also as winner of the election.
Ibezim had been kicked out as APC candidate on account of irreconcilable differences in the names on the certificates he presented to secure nomination and for supplying false information in his other documents.
A three-man panel of Justices of the Court presided by Justice Abubakar Yahaya in a unanimous judgement had agreed with Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, that Ibezim submitted false information to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in aid of his qualification for the Imo North Senatorial bye-election.
Justice Ekwo had, in a judgement delivered on December 4, 2020, sacked Ibezim as candidate of the APC for the December 5 bye-election in the Imo North Senatorial District.
Ekwo had disqualified him from contesting the election on the ground that he made false statements and declarations in the affidavit and documents he submitted to his party, APC, and INEC.
The alleged false information was said to be in respect of his West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate wherein the Judge held that the names on the documents were not only different but irreconcilable and accordingly ordered his disqualification from the bye-election.
One of the certificates bears Chukwuemeka Frank Ibezim and another Francis Ibezim Chukwuemeka among other differences.
Dissatisfied with the High Court’s decision, Ibezim, the favoured candidate of Governor Hope Uzodimma, then approached the Appeal Court with a prayer that his disqualification be voided and set aside.
However delivering judgement in the appeal, Justice Stephen Adah, who read the unanimous judgement of the Court of Appeal, had held that the judgement of the High Court could not be faulted since it was evident that the Appellant submitted false information to APC and INEC.
Justice Adah had stated that no other person, than the institution that awarded certificates, could lawfully effect correction on them.
He advised that candidates must be diligent with the ways and manners they put their names in documents, stressing that it was a serious thing if a person’s name was misplaced or misspelt.
The Appeal Court had also disagreed with Ibezim that the case was statute barred, adding that, from available records, it was filed 11 days after the cause of action arose and not after 14 days as claimed by Ibezim.
According to the appellate court, the legal action was instituted on September 23, 2020, whereas INEC had received the said forged documents from the APC on September 13, 2020.
With the Supreme Court’s decision, INEC will now proceed to formally declare a winner of the election and issue Ibezim a certificate of return as required by law for him to be sworn in as a Senator.
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