Mission to disqualify Buhari: The ping-pong begins

The legal back and forth game in the court process to disqualify the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari from contesting in the forthcoming elections kicked off in Abuja Monday.
Buhari and his party, opposed the orders of a Federal High Court in Abuja, directing that they be served through substituted means‎ in the suit challenging Buhari’s eligibility to stand for the March 28 poll.
Justice Adeniyi Ademola had, in two separate suits challenging Buhari’s eligibility to contest in the election, last week granted ex parte orders permitting the plaintiffs to serve the defendants in the suits through newspaper publications.
The court had also granted an order of abridgment of time within which the defendants must respond to the suits.
Buhari and the APC through their lawyers, told the court that they would file applications challenging the competence of the suits and the entire steps taken in the suit so far, including the orders of service through substituted means.
Though, both Buhari and the APC had yet to file any papers in the suit, their lawyers – Chief Wole Olanipekun and Lateef Fagbemi – urged the court to adjourn the matter to enable them file all the necessary documents.
Fagbemi also urged the court to ‎set aside the order of abridgment of time within which the defendants must file their responses, arguing that the granting of the order hinged on urgency, had already been diminished with the postponement of the poll from February 14 to March 28.
The judge then adjourned till February 23.

-Ripples

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