A Federal High Court in Abuja upheld Mr Kolade Alabi’s leadership of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) on Friday.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a judgement, dismissed the suit, seeking a declaration that Alabi was not qualified to be the national president of ALGON.
The judge held that the applicants lacked the legal right to institute the suit, which he said was an abuse of court process as the applicants have filed similar suits to challenge Alabi’s presidency.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1609/2023, was instituted by the Incorporated Trustees of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON), Hon Abubakar Abdullahi and Hon Shaban Oyinoyi Shuabu.
The applicants argued that Alabi, the immediate-past president, who was chairman of Bariga Local Council Development Area (LCDA) in Lagos State at the time, cannot be president of the association as Bariga is not among the country’s 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs).
They joined the Federal Ministry of Finance, Accountant-General of the Federation, Governor of the Central Bank, Attorney-General of the Federation, Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Inspector-General of Police, State Security Services (SSS), and Honourable Alabi as 1st to 8th respondents, respectively.
In their originating summons filed by Bartholomew Opara, they maintained that Alabi is not eligible to be ALGON president as he was not a local government chairman as contemplated by the 1999 Constitution, the Constitution of ALGON, and a Supreme Court decision that touched on the dispute.
They contended that Alabi had been removed by ALGON’s National Executive Council in 2019 but he kept parading himself as president and
urged the court to uphold the removal of Alabi by NEC and perpetually restrain him from further parading as such, among other reliefs.
But Alabi’s lawyer, Wahab Shittu (SAN), filed a counter affidavit and a preliminary objection, praying for the court to decline jurisdiction on the matter, strike out the case, and dismiss the entire suit for lack of jurisdiction and for being incompetent.
He added that the entire case rests on the constitution of ALGON, and the only person that can be sued is the national president, but the person sued “is the national chairman.”
Delivering the judgement, Justice Ekwo held that the subject matter of the case and the claims of the applicants were matters that the ALGON, by its general assembly and by applying the provisions of its constitution, could resolve.
“In other words, the subject matter of this case belongs in the realm of internal affairs of the association, which no outsider, not even the court, can interfere with or resolve,” he added, and he maintained that an association is bound by its registered constitution and that it is also bound by the decision of the majority taken at its legitimate meetings.
Justice Ekwo said any member who did not agree with the decision of the majority had the option of leaving the association and agreed with Alabl’s argument that, being an internal affair of the body, the court ought not to interfere.
The judge also described the instant suit as an abuse of the court process, having filed similar matters in FCT in suit numbers: FCT/HC/CV/1823/2021; CV/2329/2020; and FHC/JAL/CS/28/2022 in the Jalingo division of the Federal High Court.
“In the end, I make an order dismissing this case for lack of locus standi of the plaintiffs, abuse of process of the court, and incompetence of the originating process.” The judge held and awarded a fine of N100,000 against the plaintiffs in favour of Alabi (8th defendant).
He also directed that the fine be paid within 30 days of the order.
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