Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State
will know whether he would remain in power or not on May 31 2013, as the
Supreme Court has fixed the date to deliver final judgement in the
appeal filed by the former governor of the state, Segun Oni against his
election.
The full panel of the apex court presided over by Justice Tanko Mohammed fixed the date after parties in the suit adopted their processes.
In his submission, counsel to Oni, J.K Gadzama (SAN) urged the court to set aside the October 15, 2010 judgement of the lower court which sacked Oni on ground of alleged likelihood of bias.
He argued that the suspended President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami who constituted and presided over the panel and also wrote the judgment of the Appeal Court that sacked Oni from office had close affinity with Senator Bola Tinubu, the alter ego of Fayemi's party, the Action Congress of Nigeria ACN.
He said: "Bias or likelihood of it makes a decision a nullity and is therefore a sufficient ground for the lower court to set aside its own judgment."
However, in a preliminary objection, Fayemi through his counsel, Olusola Baiyashea, SAN said the Supreme Court did not have the jurisdiction to hear the appeal.
Fayemi submitted that going by the reports of the National Judicial Council (NJC) which investigated the allegation, Salami and other judges of the appellate court which sat over the matter have been exonerated hence the allegation had become irrelevant to the instant case.
He also argued that the reliefs sought by the appellant emanated from the governorship election tribunal which case should terminate at the Court of Appeal.
He submitted that the court has no jurisdiction to entertain the appeal, being an appeal emanating from the decision of the court below in governorship election petition of Ekiti State arising from the governorship election of 2007 to which Section 246 (3) of the 1999 Constitution is applicable.
He also submitted that there was no valid appeal before the court.
The full panel of the apex court presided over by Justice Tanko Mohammed fixed the date after parties in the suit adopted their processes.
In his submission, counsel to Oni, J.K Gadzama (SAN) urged the court to set aside the October 15, 2010 judgement of the lower court which sacked Oni on ground of alleged likelihood of bias.
He argued that the suspended President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Ayo Salami who constituted and presided over the panel and also wrote the judgment of the Appeal Court that sacked Oni from office had close affinity with Senator Bola Tinubu, the alter ego of Fayemi's party, the Action Congress of Nigeria ACN.
He said: "Bias or likelihood of it makes a decision a nullity and is therefore a sufficient ground for the lower court to set aside its own judgment."
However, in a preliminary objection, Fayemi through his counsel, Olusola Baiyashea, SAN said the Supreme Court did not have the jurisdiction to hear the appeal.
Fayemi submitted that going by the reports of the National Judicial Council (NJC) which investigated the allegation, Salami and other judges of the appellate court which sat over the matter have been exonerated hence the allegation had become irrelevant to the instant case.
He also argued that the reliefs sought by the appellant emanated from the governorship election tribunal which case should terminate at the Court of Appeal.
He submitted that the court has no jurisdiction to entertain the appeal, being an appeal emanating from the decision of the court below in governorship election petition of Ekiti State arising from the governorship election of 2007 to which Section 246 (3) of the 1999 Constitution is applicable.
He also submitted that there was no valid appeal before the court.
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