The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application filed by Omobayo Godwin seeking leave to challenge the Federal High Court judgment that reinstated Philip Shaibu as Deputy Governor of Edo State.
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Delivering the unanimous ruling of a three-member panel of the court on Wednesday, Justice Okon Abang held that Godwin’s bid to obtain leave to appeal the judgment delivered by the Federal High Court on July 17, 2024, was incompetent and unjustified.
Justice Abang ruled that although Godwin argued that he was not personally named in the original suit, he was nonetheless a party by virtue of occupying the office of Deputy Governor at the time.
He described the applicant’s claim as “misleading and misconceived”, noting that the office he held was directly sued, making him bound by the proceedings and judgment of the court.
The three reliefs sought by Godwin in his application were an extension of time to seek leave to appeal, leave to appeal as an interested party against the judgment in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CV/178/2024 delivered on July 17, 2024, and an extension of time to file the appeal.
However, Justice Abang held that the first two prayers were incompetent, leaving only the request for extension of time to appeal for consideration by the court.
In resolving the issue, Justice Abang reiterated the legal requirement that an applicant must provide “good and substantial reasons” for failing to appeal within the prescribed period, as well as show that the proposed grounds of appeal have merit.
He held that when the Federal High Court, in its judgment, ordered Godwin to vacate the seat of Deputy Governor of Edo State, he used his executive authority and refused to comply with the order.
Justice Abang said that when committal proceedings were initiated against him for refusing to vacate office, the applicant rushed to the Court of Appeal to stop the proceedings.
The court held that the committal proceedings should proceed unhindered.
The appellate court further held that Godwin failed to provide sufficient reasons for the delay and faulted his explanation that he delayed action due to a “misapprehension” of the need to appeal, describing it as a “lame and untenable excuse”.
Justice Abang, who described the application as strange and peculiar, said the applicant was fully aware of the judgment and its implications but failed to act within the legally stipulated timeframe.
The court also observed that the issues raised in the proposed appeal had been overtaken by events, particularly as Godwin’s tenure had already expired.
According to the court, any appeal at this stage would serve no practical purpose and would amount to an academic exercise.
“The purpose of this application is merely to frustrate ongoing committal proceedings,” the court held, warning that judicial time should not be wasted on appeals that lack value.
In a strongly worded remark, Justice Abang cautioned public office holders against disregarding court orders, stating that “executive might has its expiry date” and stressing the supremacy of the rule of law.
Consequently, the court dismissed the application in its entirety and awarded costs of N500,000 against the applicant.
The ruling was concurred in by the other members of the panel, who agreed that the application was frivolous, devoid of merit and an abuse of judicial process.
It would be recalled that Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court had, in a judgment delivered on July 17, 2024, reinstated Shaibu as Deputy Governor of Edo State following his impeachment by the Edo State House of Assembly.
The trial judge held that Shaibu’s removal from office and the subsequent appointment of Godwin as his replacement by the Governor of Edo State was illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.
Aside from restoring Shaibu to office as Deputy Governor, the court ordered that all his salaries, allowances and benefits be paid from April 8, when he was illegally impeached, until the expiration of his tenure.
The court maintained that the reason given by the Edo State House of Assembly for impeaching Shaibu was lame and smacked of an orchestrated political vendetta.
Shaibu, in his motion marked FHC/ABJ/CS/321/2024, had joined the Edo State Government, the Governor of Edo State, the Edo State House of Assembly, the Speaker of the Assembly, the Clerk of the Assembly, the Chief Judge of Edo State, the Inspector-General of Police and the Director-General of the Department of State Services as defendants.
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