The Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu on Thursday, May 15, upheld the nullification of the July 2022 local government elections in Ebonyi State, affirming that the exercise was invalid.
The appellate court overturned an earlier 2022 judgment by Justice R.O. Riman of the Federal High Court in Abakaliki, which had supported the elections. Instead, it ruled in favor of the respondents who had challenged the legality of the polls.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Joseph Ekanem dismissed three separate appeals filed by the Ebonyi State Government, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and the affected local government chairmen. The appellants had sought to reverse the Federal High Court ruling that voided the elections.
The court stated that the disputed judgment in Suit No. FHC/AI/CS/224/2022 aimed to enforce an earlier decision in FHC/AI/CS/151/2022, which had already nullified the elections. It further noted that the appellants’ briefs raised excessive and irrelevant issues, making their arguments legally defective.
In Appeal CA/E/381/2022, involving Hon. Nwogba Ebere Oboh and others against Otu Collins Eleri and others, the court found no merit in the case. Likewise, in CA/E/176/2023, filed by the CBN, the court clarified that while local government funds from the Federation Account must be released, they cannot be accessed or used by officials who were not lawfully elected.
The third appeal, CA/E/266/2023, filed by the Governor of Ebonyi State and others, was also dismissed. The court reaffirmed that the judgment nullifying the July 30, 2022 elections remains valid and in force.