Anita Ogona
A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a lawsuit seeking the removal of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje as the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The suit, filed by the APC North Central Group, was thrown out on various legal grounds.
In his ruling, Justice Ekwo stated that the APC North Central Group is not a registered juristic person, lacking the legal capacity to initiate the suit. He emphasized that the plaintiffs failed to exhaust internal mechanisms for resolving party issues before resorting to court action.
The judge further noted that the appointment of party officers by the APC’s National Executive Committee (NEC) is an internal matter, outside the jurisdiction of the court. The North Central APC Group had challenged Ganduje’s appointment, arguing it violated Article 13 of the APC Constitution due to a lack of democratic process.Led by Saleh Zazzaga, the plaintiff claimed that Ganduje’s appointment was improper since he hails from Kano State in the North West geopolitical zone, while the position was due to be filled by a representative from the North Central zone.
In the case marked FHC/ABJ/CS/599/2024, the plaintiffs sought to restrain Ganduje from acting as APC chairman and requested the court to prevent the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognizing any actions taken by the APC under Ganduje’s leadership since his appointment on August 3, 2023.
Justice Ekwo ultimately ruled that there was no legal basis for the action, affirming that the plaintiffs lacked the authority to file the case in any Nigerian court.
The dismissal underscores the court’s stance on the internal governance matters of political parties, reinforcing the need for adherence to established constitutional processes.
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