Benue APC crisis: Appeal Court reserves judgement in Agba vs Agada

The Court of Appeal, Makurdi Division, has heard the appeal brought by Hon. Moses Agaba against the decision of the High Court to set aside the interim order restraining Comrade Austin Agada as the Benue State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Hon.Agaba, in this appeal, is challenging the ruling of Justice M. A. Ikpambese, the Chief Judge of Benue State, for setting aside the interim order issued by the Benue State High Court, Aliade Division restraining Agada from parading himself as the Chairman of APC, Benue State Chapter.

Arguing the Appeal, Moses Agaba’s Counsel, Matthew Burkaa, SAN, adopted his brief of argument and submitted that the Chief Judge of the lower court was wrong to have retrieved the case file from another judge of the High Court and set aside the interim order issued by the other judge.

He contended that doing so amounted to the Chief Judge sitting on appeal over the decision of a judge of coordinate jurisdiction.

Responding, Counsel to Austin Agada, Yakubu Philemon, SAN, adopted his brief and contended that the lower Court was right in setting aside the interim injunction because the order, which was meant to subsist for only 7 days, had elapsed on 12th February, 2024, and there was no application to breathe life into it again when it was set aside.

In another development, the Court of Appeal has also heard the appeal challenging the ruling and judgment of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, (NICN), Makurdi Division, delivered on the 15th of June 2023 wherein the Court refused to consider processes filed by Counsel to the Appellants challenging jurisdiction of the Court to hear the suit filed by the 23 former Local Government Council Chairmen in Benue State, who were elected under the platform of the PDP.

Counsel to Appellants, S. A. Akpehe, Esq, adopted his brief and maintained that the lower court had no jurisdiction to entertain the suit of the 23 former LG Chairmen because the subject matter of the suit was not an industrial issue.

The court, having heard the arguments of Counsel, reserved judgment in the appeals to a date to be communicated to the parties.