The Court of Appeal sitting at Makurdi has struck out the Notice of Appeal filed by Mr. Benjamin Omale, Benue State Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), for no longer having a live issue or subject matter requiring determination.
Mr Omale had approached the appellate court, praying it to set aside the decision of the lower court, which had earlier entered judgment in favour of Mr Austin Agada as the state chairman of APC. The appeal was pending determination when Mr Agada’s tenure expired, leading to the conduct of the last State Congress, which produced Mr Omale as the substantive State Chairman.
In a swift turn of events, Mr Omale applied to withdraw his appeal on the ground that the matter had been overtaken by events.
Consequently, the Court of Appeal, in a unanimous decision, struck out the appeal.
The Court of Appeal further ordered that each party should bear its own costs.
Meanwhile, a senior lawyer and APC chieftain in the state, Terfa Jirgba, Esq, has congratulated Mr Omale on his victory.
Mr Jirgba told TNT that since the tenure of Mr Agada has expired, continuing with the appeal would amount to an academic exercise, and the court has no time to spare.
It could be recalled that the APC suspended Mr Agada in his Ehaje Ward 1, Owukpa, Ogbadibo Local Government Area of Benue State, following a vote of no confidence in his position and membership of the Broom Party. The action followed the receipt and consideration of a petition by Mr Dan Onjeh, the APC’s 2023 Senatorial Candidate, who alleged that Mr Agada committed anti-party activities.
