President Muhammadu Buhari and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF)/Justice Minister Abubakar Malami (SAN) have lost the battle to nullify provisions of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.
The Supreme Court ruled out the suit in which the applicants challenged that section of the Act because it violates the rights of political appointees.
The section reads: “No political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the convention or congress of any political party for the nomination of candidates for any election.”
In its unanimous ruling, a seven-member panel of the apex court, headed by Justice Musa Dattijo Mohammed, held that Buhari, having participated in the making of the law by assenting to it, could not turn around to fault its provisions.
The court upheld all the grounds of objection raised by the National Assembly through its lawyer, Dr. Olukayode Ajulo, against the competence of the suit marked: SC/504/2022.
The House of Representatives and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, hailed the verdict of the apex court.
The House said it expected nothing less than the decision while Atiku said the ruling is further testimony to the independence of the judiciary.
