The appeal of the Presidential candidate of the Hope Democratic Party (HDP) in the February 23 poll Chief Ambrose Albert and Owuru and his party at the Supreme Court may have to wait a while because of none service of the processes on the defendant – President Mahammadu Buhari.
This is as the plaintiffs have accused Buhari and his lead counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) of evading service of Supreme Court processes.
Recall, the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, had on August 22 dismissed the petition of the appellants against Buhari’s victory at the Feb. 23 poll on the grounds that their acclaimed referendum of February 16 was not conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC) as required by law, while it held that the election was conducted by the electoral body in line with the provision of the law.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, HPD and Owuru lodged an appeal at the apex court against the judgment.
However, in a new twist to the appeal, an affidavit of service deposed to by the bailiff of the apex court, Ekoja Paul, and sighted by this correspondent, alleged that the services of the court processes on President Buhari at the presidential villa were scuttled on three occasions by fully armed presidential guards.
The bailiff in the affidavit, dated September 4, claimed that he was at the presidential villa in Aso Rock to serve Buhari with a notice of appeal and record of appeal but that his efforts were aborted by the presidential security guards who allegedly denied him access to effect service on the president as required by law.
Paul in a separate affidavit of service also claimed that he was at the chamber of Chief Olanipekun, lead counsel to President Buhari, at number 6, Osakati close, off Constantine street, Wuse Zone 4, to serve notice of appeal and record of appeal, but was refused on the grounds that he has not been briefed to handle the case at the Supreme Court.
INEC and the APC, that were second and third respondents in the appeal however accepted the service of the court processes, according to the bailiff.
In another affidavit marked SC/1110/2019 and deposed to by one Odion Peter Ebhoaya, a legal practitioner in Abuja, HDP and Owuru claimed that they have been forced to file an ex-parte application on September 13 for formal substituted service on President Buhari and his lead counsel.
Owuru and HDP had in the appeal asked the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, which upheld the election of President Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the February 23 election.
The appellants who claimed to have won a referendum election conducted February 16 in place of the February 23 presidential poll are challenging the tribunal’s decision that dismissed their petition on the grounds of jurisdiction.
In the appeal dated August 28 and filed same day on their behalf by Chukwunonyerem Njoku, the appellants want the Supreme Court to void the presidential election of February 23 on the grounds that it was unlawfully conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) due to illegal shift in the earlier February 16.
In the place of the election of February 23, the appellants prayed the apex court to uphold a referendum election said to have been conducted on February 16 and in which Owuru reportedly won with over 50 million voice votes by Nigerians.
The appeal which is predicated on 12 grounds also prayed the Supreme Court to order the swearing-in ceremony of Ambrose Owuru as the duly elected president of Nigeria based on the February 16 referendum.
The Supreme Court has however fixed October 3 for hearing of all applications and the main appeal.
