The Court of Appeal in Makurdi, Benue State, has heard an important case involving the leadership crisis within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. The court has now reserved its judgment on the appeal filed by Hon. Moses Agaba against a decision made by the Benue State High Court.
Agaba is challenging the High Court’s decision to remove an interim order that had stopped Comrade Austin Agada from continuing to act as the APC Chairman in Benue State. The High Court’s decision to set aside the order was made by Justice M. A. Ikpambese, the Chief Judge of Benue State.
In his appeal, Hon. Moses Agaba argues that the Chief Judge was wrong to take the case file from another judge and cancel the interim order. His lawyer, Matthew Burkaa (SAN), said the Chief Judge should not have overturned the decision of another judge because both judges were at the same level, and it amounted to one judge overstepping their authority.
On the other side, Austin Agada’s lawyer, Yakubu Philemon (SAN), argued that the High Court was right to set aside the order. He explained that the interim injunction was only supposed to last for 7 days, and it had already expired on February 12, 2024. He added that no one had asked the court to extend the order, so it was correctly set aside.
The court also heard another case during the same session. This one was about a dispute involving the 23 former Local Government Chairmen in Benue State, who were elected under the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). These former chairmen had filed a case in the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), but their case was rejected. The Appellants’ lawyer, S. A. Akpehe, argued that the NICN did not have the right to hear the case because it was not about labor or industrial issues.
After hearing all the arguments, the Court of Appeal decided to reserve its judgment, meaning they will give their decision at a later date, which will be communicated to the parties involved.
