The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has set aside the judgment of Justice Evelyn Anyadike of a Federal High Court (FHC) in Umuahia, Abia State which voided the provision of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.
The three-member panel of judges held that the FHC, Umuahia had no jurisdiction to have entertained the case with suit number: FHC/UM/CS/26/2022 filed by a lawyer, Nduka Edede.
According to the panel led by Justice Hamma Akawu- Barka, the plaintiff did not have the legal right to have filed the suit in the first place.
The appellate court said that Edede did not establish any cause of action to have warranted his approaching the court on the issue.
The panel said this was because he did not establish that he was directly affected by the provision.
The court struck out the suit marked: FHC/UM/CS/26/2022 which Edede filed before the Federal High Court in Umuahia.
The court, however, reasoned that the provision was unconstitutional on the grounds that it violates Section 42 (1)(a) of the constitution and denies a class of Nigerian citizens their right to participate in election.