Competence Of Rhodes-Vivour’s Petition: Panel to deliver ruling on final judgment day

Ruling on an application filed by the Governor of Lagos State and his deputy challenging the entire petition filed by Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the Labour Party’s candidate, in the March 18 election, was on Saturday adjourned until final judgment day by the Lagos State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.

A similar application filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seeking to strike out the petition, at this preliminary stage, for being incompetent, was also adjourned until final judgment by the three-man panel presided over by Justice Arum Ashom.

While proceedings lasted on the petition on Saturday, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Wole Olanipekun argued the application challenging Rhodes-Vivour’s entire petition on behalf of his clients, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu & his deputy, Kadiri Obafemi Hamzat.

The application was brought under Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Paragraphs 18(7)(D), & 47(1) of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022, Order 25 Rule 1 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019 and Paragraph 5(B) of the Election Judicial Proceedings Practice Directions, 2022 as well as under the inherent jurisdiction of the tribunal.

The application is seeking an order of the court, striking out and/or dismissing the petition for being incompetent, fundamentally defective and vesting no jurisdiction on the tribunal to adjudicate on it.

The application also disclosed that the entire petition filed by Rhodes-Vivour is improperly constituted, as the petitioner has not disclosed a valid right to present it.

The SAN in his argument specifically pointed out that the foundation and premise of the petitioner’s alleged right to present the petition is that he was a candidate on the platform of the Labour Party (LP) which has not been listed as a party to the petition.

Rhodes-Vivour is the sole petitioner in his petition before the tribunal.

It was also pointed out by the respondents that Obafemi Hamzat was sued as a party in the petition simply because he was a deputy governorship candidate, and none of the grounds of Rhodes-Vivour’s petition specifically referenced or made any complaint about him. 

They therefore urged the tribunal to strike out all the pleadings in the petition that relates to him.

Concerning the contractual relationship between INEC and one Amazon Web Services, the respondents say there is no allegation in the petition that the parties to the contract did not fulfil their mutual obligations.

They therefore asked the tribunal to hold that the entire petition is inherently contradictory, incompatible with the Electoral Act, 2022 and has not vested the tribunal with the vires to assume jurisdiction over it.

Responding to the application, Rhodes-Vivour through his lead counsel, and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olumide Ayeni submitted that Section 133 (1) Electoral Act, 2022 allows the Petitioner to elect to present his Petition alone with or without his sponsoring political party and no violation of Paragraph 4(1)(b) First Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022 vitiating the Petition is disclosed as concerns the right or “valid” right of the petitioner to present the petition.

"That there is no “recusal of the Labour Party from filing a petition to challenge the 18th March 2023 Governorship Election in Lagos State” nor is the election of the petitioner to present the Petition alone pursuant to Section 133(1) Electoral Act, 2022 tantamount to “an acceptance of the results of the election by Labour Party”, Ayeni argued.

It was also the argument of the petitioner, that for the Governor to be effectively qualified to contest the election, there is constitutionally required a qualified person to be his Deputy Governorship candidate, and Obafemi Hamzat was not a qualified person to contest on the joint ticket by the combined effect of Sections 177, 182(1)(a) and 187 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.

Rhodes-Vivour insisted that his petition is clear, straightforward, devoid of contradictions and is not in any way “inherently contradictory”. 

He urged the Tribunal in the interest of justice to dismiss the application filed by the Governor and his deputy.

After arguments on the application, parties agreed on the number of witnesses to be called and the time allotted to each witness to testify. 

They also agreed to file their list of the issues for the tribunal’s determination. 

The tribunal directed that the scheduling of documents should be done by all parties on or before Friday, June 16, 2023.

Justice Ashom adjourned further proceedings in the petition until Monday, June 5, 2023, when it will rule on the application by the petitioner seeking to consolidate his petition with that of the PDP and its candidate, Olajide Adediran (popularly known as Jandor) and also the application of the petitioner seeking leave of the tribunal to call additional witnesses.

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