The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by a governorship aspirant of the Labour Party in Plateau State, Yohanna Margif, challenging the nomination of Patrick Dakum as the candidate of the party.
Justice John Okoro dismissed the appeal following the withdrawal of the suit by the appellant, Margif, after discovering that the matter had become statute barred.
Counsel to the appellant, Mr Opeyemi George Ojo, had pleaded with the apex court to invoke Section 22 of the Supreme Court Act to take over the matter and resolve all disputed issues in the interest of justice to his client.
His persuasion was however rejected by the five-man panel of Justices of the Court on the ground that conditions precedent for the court to invoke Section 22 of the Supreme Court Act were not met.
The justices specifically reminded the lawyer that both the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court no longer have jurisdiction that can be invoked by the Supreme Court since the time for the matter to be heard had lapsed.
Confronted with reality on the futility of his request, the appellant announced withdrawal of his appeal and was subsequently dismissed by Justice Okoro.
The appellant had challenged the emergence of Dakum as the Labour Party’s governorship candidate in Plateau State insisting that he won the primary election of the party and never withdrew his nomination.
The party, however, insisted that he wrote, voluntarily withdrawing his candidacy, and copied the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the same letter.
The party claimed that following the withdrawal by Margif, a new primary election was conducted in which Dakum emerged and his name submitted to INEC.