A Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday struck out a case seeking to send the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Joash Amupitan, to prison over alleged disobedience to a court order, after the applicant failed to properly pursue the matter.
The case was filed by Edozie Njoku, who claimed to be the National Chairman of the National Rescue Movement, and asked the court to commit the INEC chairman to Kuje prison. He accused the commission of refusing to monitor a party convention. The application was brought through a contempt proceeding, but the court found that the process was not handled in line with legal requirements.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik ruled that the applicant did not take the necessary steps to serve the required court documents personally on the INEC chairman. She explained that in contempt cases, which have a criminal nature, strict rules must be followed, including direct service of court papers on the person involved. Since this was not done, the court held that the application could not stand.
The judge also made it clear that it is not the duty of the court to assist any party in serving documents, stating that the responsibility lies fully with the applicant. Due to this failure, the court had no option but to strike out the case.
The matter was linked to an earlier order said to have been issued by another judge of the Federal High Court directing INEC to monitor a convention of the party. However, that process did not take place, reportedly because a similar convention had already been conducted.
Following the ruling, the recognised leadership of the National Rescue Movement welcomed the court’s decision. The party’s chairman, Chinedu Obi, said the judgement cleared doubts around the issue and described the case as an attempt by someone who is not a member of the party to take control of its structure.
He added that the party’s leadership remains as listed on INEC’s official records and urged members across the country to stay committed as preparations continue toward the 2027 general elections.